


The Origins of The Black Widow

by TheBlackShadowx



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-27
Updated: 2016-08-19
Packaged: 2018-02-22 20:58:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 35
Words: 121,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2521562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBlackShadowx/pseuds/TheBlackShadowx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of how the Black Widow became to be. detailed description of her life in the Red Room and what happened when she defected. this is my own creation so if things appear that is not in the comics that's the reason. i don't things can ever be too far stretched so excuse me if it gets weird. </p><p>DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING TO DO WITH MARVEL . WRITTEN FOR ENTERTAINMENT ONLY</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors Note: Hey Guys, my first piece; hope you enjoy it. Let me know if there is anything I can do to improve.  
> This is also posted on Fanfiction, however after someone informed me that they could not read it, i decided to post it on this website as well.
> 
> Target Audience: Rating M. Suitable for readers 16 and over.
> 
> Warning: Violence included.
> 
> *please note that all dialogue taking place is in Russian*

Chapter One

She knew the life she had lived was over as she stood in the snow one late winter night. Her home burning brightly behind her as she watched a tall man in uniform shoot her parents in the head mercilessly before turning his attention onto her. He walked steadily over to where she stood shaking from the cold. The man held out his hand to the red haired child, waiting until she took it before leading her away into the comfort of darkness. Never once did she cry. Never once did she look back. Even as a child; the little girl known as Natalia was already starting the journey that would become the most feared assassin in history.

The man later introduced himself as Ivan; he told her he was her handler and from here on out she must do what he ordered her to do without hesitation. Natalia simply nodded and followed him through the corridors of what was known as the Red Room facility. He led her into a small room which he told her was now hers. The room was bare, consisting of a small bed, a small table and a wardrobe. Ivan left her alone, explaining he would be back shortly and she should change into the clothes on the bed. Four years old Natalia nodded and turned to the clothes; a black short sleeved top and black combat trousers. She changed quickly and stood waiting for him to come back.

Ivan did come back as promised a few minutes later. Gesturing for her to follow, he led her deeper into her new home until they came to a large training area. The room was vast with mats spread out across the entire width and various training equipment in the corners. Natalia observed the room; her eyes drawn to a pair of girls older than herself sparring in the middle of the room. Ivan watched her as Natalia's eyes widened in shock at the speed of which the girls were fighting.

"Come Natalia" Ivan told her, leading her towards an imposing man at the opposite side of the room. She followed him.

"FORM UP" Barked the instructor at a group of girls in front of him. He turned round as Ivan approached.

"General Petrovich" the instructor nodded at him in acknowledgement.

"Instructor, I have a new recruit for you. Her name is Natalia" replied Ivan gesturing at Natalia. She stepped forward and nodded at her new instructor.

"So… you're my new student are you? First thing you need to know; I tell you to do something, you do it without question, understood?" he said looking directly at her. She simply nodded again. Suddenly the instructor lashed out, striking her face. Natalia fell to the ground, her cheek stinging and lip split. She glared up at him with tears in the corners of her eyes.

"When I ask you a question I expect the first and last word to come out of your mouth to be either 'sir' or 'master', is that clear?" he asked calmly and quietly, staring down intently at the child before him.

Natalia nodded quickly and replied, "Sir yes Sir" the instructor nodded before turning his attention back on Ivan.

"Very well I will take her on for a period of one month to see if she will be worth the Red Rooms time." He told Ivan.

Ivan nodded and turned on his heel, without another word or glance at either of them he left the room.

Natalia got back on her feet and turned her attention onto her instructor. He commanded her to stand still before slowly circling her; looking at her from all angles. Nodding to himself he stopped back in front of her. "Join the back row" he commanded her.

Natalia scrambled to obey and took her place next to a girl similar in age with long black hair. The instructor continued to shout out commands and Natalia copied the other girls; she had always been a fast learner so she picked it up quickly. Hours passed and she was tiring quickly. She stumbled but quickly recovered as the girls began a new routine. At long last the instructor shouted "HALT"

All the girls quickly stood to attention in front of the instructor; all save Natalia face were expressionless, Natalia however was looking exhausted and relieved that it was over. The instructor saw and stalked over to her. Grabbing her by the hair, he dragged her out of formation and over to several guards dotted around the room. Shoving her into them- she stumbled- he said " See to it that she understands that feelings are not permitted here; if she cries continue the lesson until she stops. Understood?" The guards nodded before grabbing Natalia's arms and dragging her out of the room.

They dragged her down several bleak corridors before shoving her into an empty, bare cell. The guards followed; slamming the door shut behind them, effectively trapping her. One guard grabbed her arms and viciously twisted them behind her; she cried out in pain however that only made the guard twist them further. The Second guard began to punch her unprotected stomach repeatedly. Natalia began to sob and scream in pain as a rib cracked. The punishment continued, the first guard dropped her and they both proceeded to kick her as she curled up in an attempt to protect herself, sobbing the entire time. Time passed in unknown quantity and slowly she stopped crying as she slowly lost consciousness. The guards continued for a few more minutes before stopping the beating. They dragged her between them back to her room before calling a doctor to check on her.

She woke up in pain; every inch of her small body was on fire. Natalia looked around unsure where she was for a moment before the events of the previous day caught up with her. She slowly dragged herself to her feet and inspected herself to see the injuries. Bruises covered her arms and legs and she could feel the tight bandage across her stomach, she knew she had at least one broken rib. A sound outside her door alerted her to someone's presence. Her door opened and Ivan walked in. He stopped a few steps from where she stood, staring intently at her. "Do you understand why you were punished Natalia?" when he spoke, his voice was hard and cold.

Natalia involuntary took a step back at his chilling tone before replying, "Yes Master"

"And why were you punished?" he asked again, stepping towards her.

"I showed my emotions. Emotions have no place in my life anymore; I failed." She spoke quietly and without emotion while looking directly at the floor. Ivan studied her silently before nodding his head. "Good. Let's go, your instructor awaits you." He turned around and walked out of the door, clearly expecting her to follow. She did.

She stood before her instructor silently and emotionless as he walked around her, inspecting her injuries. He punched her in the stomach, carefully watching her reaction. Natalia let out a small gasp of pain and bent over breathing deeply for a moment before straightening up slowly and standing at attention with no trace of emotion across her delicate features. The instructor stared intently before stating "You learn quickly. That is good"

He led her over to an empty mat and instructed her to copy him. He settled into a defense stance; she copied. Walking around her, checking her stance he continually commented and changed her posture before nodding in satisfaction. He began showing her how to punch, kick and block effectively and for several hours she did just that; after he told her to attack him with everything she has got. She nodded before launching herself at him drawing on everything he had just taught her and ignoring the pain from her injuries as much as she could. The instructor blocked and sidestepped every attack she threw at him before retaliating. Natalia blocked the first few punches before he slipped through her defenses and kicked her right leg out from under her. He followed up with a punch in the stomach kicking her flat on her back. She lay there panting and tried to blink back the tears forming in her eyes. Her instructor stared down at her and his face hardened when he saw the single tear trickle down her cheek. Kicking her once more, he turned away and left her lying there. Five minutes later, guards grabbed her and dragged her back down the corridors into the same cell as the previous day. The beating started again.

Her training lessons continued the same pattern for the next three weeks. It always began with just Natalia and her instructor. No one else. No other girls. It always ended with just Natalia and two guards in the cell. Natalia finally began to learn that emotions made her weak and the beatings were making her stronger and so she stopped resisting, she stopped crying and she stopped caring about her injuries. Her instructor was pleased with her progress. Natalia learnt quickly and soon was being taught to throw harder, faster strikes with her fists, feet and elbows. The training was merciless, the instructors taught her it reflected the world outside the walls of the Red Room and she must be ready for whatever was thrown at her.

Her one month probation was up. Natalia stood to attention in front Ivan and her instructor. "She is a strong child Ivan, she learns quickly and well. I will continue her training for the next eleven months after that time I will recommend whether or not she should be terminated." The instructor spoke to Ivan as though she was not there. Ivan nodded his head and smiled proudly at Natalia. "Well done Natalia, you have pleased me greatly with your progress, continue and you will do well here. Dismissed"

Natalia bowed to the two men before she walked to the opposite side of the room where the punching bags resided. The men watch silently as she began to deliver a series of precise punches into the bag. "She will be our greatest creation Ivan, someday" the instructor told him before walking over and joining Natalia. Ivan stood there for a moment contemplating the future; "indeed she shall" he said quietly to himself before leaving.

"Why do I not train with the other girl's master?" asked five year old Natalia while going through a rather difficult balancing routine. The fist came out of nowhere. It struck Natalia in the stomach making her stumble but not fall. A swift kick came next, taking her flat on her back. Her instructor placed his boot over her wind pipe before replying, "You do not ask questions Natalia, you know this, why continue this act of defiance? it will gain you nothing" with that he started to increase the pressure on her neck. Natalia began to writhe beneath, clawing at his leg as her oxygen was cut off. "Perhaps you need another lesson in obedience Natalia" he mused aloud. The instructor watched with sadistic pleasure as her eyes widened in fear; he took his foot off her neck enabling her to breathe again before gesturing towards several guards to step forward. Natalia rolled onto all fours as she coughed and gasped as air filled her lungs.

"Take her to cell four gentlemen. I will join you shortly" the instructor ordered them before walking away. The guards approached her and dragged her out of the room.

The cell they threw her in consisted of three by three meters in diameter with metal walls, no windows and a chair. The chair was ignored; set to the side; and Natalia found herself in a heap on the cold metal floor. Her instructor walked in one hour later with a large box. One guard stepped forward and took the box before her instructor walked over to where she lay. He crouched down in front of her and grabbed her chin tightly, forcing her to look up at him. "You will learn obedience Natalia" he coldly told her before standing back up again.

"Take off her top" he ordered his men, they complied. Natalia fought back as they ripped her clothes off her, one man delivered a glancing blow to the side of the head to make her more compliant. Eventually she stood there shivering in only her trousers, glaring at the men in front of her. Snapping his fingers, her instructor walked behind her, pushing her onto her knees. "Hold her down" he commanded before turning his attention to the box. Opening it, he took out a long coiled leather whip before getting into position. Without another word, he began to strike her exposed back. She screamed. Underneath the men holding her down, she thrashed around trying in vain to escape the agony lancing up and down her small frame.

Time held no meaning to her. It could have been minutes or hours that passed; while only marked by the new scream that pierced the air every time a new lash found its mark. Pain was all she new until the blissful moment where the sound of the whip hitting her skin ceased. "Release her" she heard in the background and found the iron grips release her from hells embrace. Footsteps sounded in front of her and a hand gripped her chin, forcing her to look up. "One hundred and ninety strikes Natalia. Next time it will be three hundred and ninety." Her instructor told her before leaving the room with the guards. Leaving her alone on the cold, bloody floor.

 

Please note that Natalia was born in 1928 and so later gets a super serum which of course comes later. Hope you enjoyed it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note that Natalia was born in 1928 and so later gets a super serum which of course comes later. Hope you enjoyed it.


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

It has been two years since the day her instructor had made sure she paid for her disobedience in blood. She learnt her lesson; Natalia never questioned her instructor again. That is not to say she was never punished again; oh no she was. At length. But it was always for different reasons; every slight infraction on her part resulted in pain but Natalia was never punished twice for the same reason. She had always been a fast learner.

"Read chapter one and two out loud please Natalia" ordered her language teacher. Natalia stood up at attention and opened her mouth; "Ультиматум лорда Керзона советскому правительству…"

She received a slap. "In English Natalia" her teacher snapped. She quickly opened her mouth again, ignoring her stinging check; "An ultimatum by Lord Curzon to the Soviet government…" and so it went on. For hours Natalia read and repeated every word out loud to her teacher in whatever language he suddenly chose. At seven years old, Natalia was already fluent in Russian, English and German. It had been easier to learn after the first punishment that was inflicted upon her due to her failure to pronounce the words correctly. She never stumbled again.

At long last she was dismissed by her teacher and Natalia began the walk back to the training room where yet another physically draining lesson was waiting. It was not that she did not like the training- indeed she was honored to have been chosen to fight for Mother Russia- it was that when they told them they would never forgot the lesson; they meant it. Her instructors never held back when delivering blows; their belief was that the world was not relenting therefore neither were they. Those who survived the training would become the greatest assassins alive, those who did not would become corpses. It was a tough way to life and a painful way to die but it was a way.

Natalia walked into the large training area. It was empty save her instructor and another girl; she headed straight to where they waited. Her instructor turned to look at her as she approached. "Natalia." He greeted her with a nod, before turning his attention to both girls standing before him.

"Today you will fight each other. It has been too long since either of you have fought an opponent of similar stature or ability therefore the Masters upstairs has requested this match. No weapons are permitted save your body. BEGIN!"

The two girls instantly dropped into their fighting stance, warily circling each other, trying to find a weakness. It was the other girl who struck first; darting forward she delivered a stunning blow at Natalia's head which Natalia blocked before retaliating with a strike of her own. It continued this way for several minutes; the opponents exchanging a flurry of fists and kicks, almost too fast to see. The instructor observed from the side as the match progressed. Natalia's opponent began to get angry as none of her strikes met their target; it showed in her movements, they began to get wilder and off target. Sensing an opening, Natalia feinted to the girl's left- unprotected- side before changing the direction of her fist towards the right. The fist struck the girls side with a resounding crack as several ribs broke. The girl grunted and instinctively lowered her arms to her wounded side; Natalia used the moment of weakness to vault over the girl and place her in a choke hold from behind. The girl knew she had lost and so stopped fighting, waiting to be released. Looking up, Natalia glanced at her instructor awaiting instructions. The instructor walked over to them both and with a cold look down at the fallen girl spoke to Natalia,

"Finish her"

Her eyes widened in surprise as she looked up at her instructor before looking down towards her fallen opponent; she saw the girl's features reflect her own but this time in fear. With one last look at her instructor, Natalia sharply twisted her arms and the girl fell limp to the ground: her neck broken.

Natalia stepped away from the dead girl before standing at attention before her instructor; no sign of the emotional battle raging inside her displayed on her face. Her instructor studied her before stating,

"Next time you will not hesitate"

Natalia glanced at the floor before returning her gaze back on the instructor. "No master" she replied softly, "I will not"

"You will not what Natalia?" he further questioned. Her voice cold and hard, she replied, "I will not hesitate a second time"

The instructor nodded, a small cold smile playing at the edges of his lips. "Dismissed." Natalia bowed then left the room. Not once looking back at the life she just took.

Back in her room, Natalia began to cry silently to herself. All the emotion she had hidden deep within herself now came to the surface as she saw the lifeless face of the nameless girl she had just murdered with her waking eyes. She curled herself up into a tight ball on her bed and cried herself to sleep.

The next morning came faster than she would have liked however Natalia did not dare be late for breakfast; last time she was, she was not allowed to eat for three days. A punishment they said that reflected her actions: that she did not need to eat anything. Natalia quickly washed and dressed before making her way to the mess hall. Meal times were the only time outside of sparring did she see any of the other girls. No one spoke during the meal; it was forbidden as friendships were not permitted. It was also an easy way to get unwanted attention by the instructors if you were seen talking to anyone. After finishing her cold, god forsaken breakfast, Natalia made her way to her first lesson of the day: Geography.

"The measure of how far north or south a place is from the equator is?" asked her Geography teacher

"The measure of how far north or south a place is from the equator is called latitude, Sir." Replied Natalia calmly.

"Good Natalia. Come up to the map and plot where you are if your longitude is 36 degrees and latitude is 98 degrees." Natalia obediently walked over to the map and began to calculate where exactly she would be. Five minutes later she placed her pin over America; specifically Washington. She stepped back and looked at her teacher; her teacher walked over and studied the map, checking the calculations. Nodding to himself he turned back to Natalia, "Correct" Natalia nodded "however, it took you far too long Natalia, do better next time" She lowered her gaze to the ground, nodded once before making her way back to her seat.

"Now let's see how good your memory is. Turn your attention to the map in your text book page 104…"

And so it went on for the next three hours, tedious studying of old maps and quick fired questions. Natalia's attention never wavered despite how bored she was; it would never end well for her if it did.

The rest of the day passed in a blur; math, languages, full combat sessions and knife throwing. By the end, Natalia was exhausted both mentally and physically; not to mention that she had earned several more impressive bruises to add to her growing collection on her body. She was deeply asleep that night, too tired for the nightmares when suddenly something caught her leg and threw her off the bed onto the floor. Half awake, she did not have enough time to defend herself before an onslaught of punches and kicks descended. The beating went on for hours. It finally stopped when dawn approached and Natalia was left with several broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder and three broken fingers. She had just struggled into a sitting position when her door opened for the second time. Ivan walked in looking furious. Walking over to her, he grabbed her hair and hauled her to her feet before shoving her against the wall. "This is the best of your instincts?" he spat at her "you cannot even sense when someone enters your room, why then should I continue your training when you are nothing more than a failure?" Natalia stood there shaking in fear and pain as Ivan continued to scream at her. "You have failed me for the last time Natalia; I shall recommend your termination to the other Masters upstairs." He finally ended with, releasing her from the wall; he turned to walk out of the room. "NO" shouted Natalia in desperation, knowing that if he walked out of the door she was a dead girl walking.

"Please master, I beg you, give me another chance. I will not fail you again, I swear it" she continued begging as Ivan stopped at the door. Looking back at her Ivan spoke softly, "and what will you do if I give you a second chance?"

She looked up from where she was kneeling on the floor; "Anything" she whispered "I'll do anything"

Ivan smiled coldly at her and replied before leaving the room, "Very well Natalia, I will see you again soon. For now get to your lessons"

Natalia nodded before dragging herself back to her feet and stumbling to where her uniform lay. "Thank you" she whispered and then promised herself that she would never fail Ivan again.

It was three months later when Ivan came back to visit her. Natalia had kept her word and had obeyed all commands put to her. The instructors had noticed the change in her and were pleased with her accelerated progress. After that night; Natalia was never caught by surprise again while she slept and beat anyone who attempted to sneak up on her during the night. She was currently taking down half a dozen girls of various ages whom she had been pitted against. Ivan watched alongside her instructor as the last opponent fell to the ground unconscious. He clapped slowly as Natalia walked over to where the two men stood. Bowing deeply to them both, she stood at attention. "Well done Natalia" her instructor praised her. She nodded. Ivan studied her silently for several minutes before speaking, "Come with me Natalia, it is time you fulfilled your end of our little bargain" with that he turned round and began walking towards the exit. She swallowed hard before following him.

Ivan led her down several corridors before reaching a stair case which led down into the basement. She had never been down there before; it was forbidden. He led her into a large room with an observation window at one end and a chair in the middle. He instructed her to stand at the right end of the room and not move. She obeyed. Ivan left the room and came back five minutes later with two guards dragging a third person between them. The guards tied their prisoner to a chair in the middle of the room before retreating back out the door. Ivan walked up behind him and pulled the hood off his face and revealed her uncle, bloodied from the beating he had been given but nevertheless it was her uncle. Natalia stared at him; old memories awakening inside her from another life, another time. She looked at her master once before returning her attention on the unwanted ghost. "Natalia" Ivan spoke, his voice hard. Her gaze snapped to him as he gestured for her to walk forwards. She complied. "Do you know who this is?" he asked her. She nodded slowly, "Yes Master, I do" his gaze hardened.

"Whatever he once was to you; is he no longer understood?" he further asked. She simply stared at him in shock. Walking swiftly forward, he struck her face, forcing her to stumble backwards. "Answer me Natalia!" he snapped at her. She recovered quickly. "Yes Master. I understand. He is no one to me" Natalia replied quickly, anxious to avoid being hit again. The prisoner stared at Ivan in horror before turning his attention back onto Natalia.

"Do you know who she is?" Ivan asked him, voice soft. The man shook his head.

"Well that's not very nice now is it? You don't recognize your own niece? How sad" Ivan shook his head, his voice dripping with false sadness. "Viktor Romanov, allow me to introduce your niece, Natalia Alianovna Romanova"

The man shook his head again. "You lie. Natalia died alongside her parents in the fire that night. This girl is not my niece." Ivan chuckled slowly at his denial before waving Natalia forward. "Look closely Viktor and see your own resemblance in her face. Natalia did not die that night, only her parents did." Natalia stopped right in front of him and watched as he studied her face. "It is not possible" he spoke softly "and yet here you are моя маленькая бабочка (my little butterfly)" he began to weep openly and without shame with tears of both joy and sorrow. Natalia reeled like she had been hit. Again. She stared at him with pity before her expression turned cold. "You are not my uncle" she spoke, her voice devoid of all expression. "What?" he asked her and when no response was forth coming, he turned his head to face Ivan "what did you do to her?" he demanded. Ivan placed his hand on Natalia's shoulder. He coldly replied "I made her stronger". Removing his hand from Natalia's shoulder, he turned her around until she was facing him "He is a traitor to Mother Russia Natalia; there is only one punishment good enough for traitors." She switched her gaze between him and her uncle several times; appearing to come to a decision she settled her eyes on him. "What would you have me do Master?" she asked quietly. Ivan handed her a knife. "Kill him" he replied simply. Natalia took the knife and began to approach her former uncle.

"Natalia don't! You don't have to do this. Natalia please! Don't do this. I can help you; I can get you out of here. Natalia." He shouted at her, pleading for his life as she approached him.

"She will kill you Viktor, because I ordered her to" Ivan told him as he watched Natalia walk behind him, her face cold and unforgiving. "All traitors of Mother Russia will die" she informed him coldly before wrenching his head back and swiftly slitting his throat. She looked into his eyes as the light was extinguished before walking towards where her master waited. When she was half a meter away, she knelt before him, her head bowed. She missed the satisfied smile that made its appearance on Ivan's face. "You did well today Natalia" he told her quietly "you made Mother Russia proud". She looked up at him; her face devoid of all emotions as she simply replied: "Master"

Authors Note- oooh Natalia really is starting to lose her humanity isn't she? Killing her uncle like that *shakes head* not to fear all of it will be gone soon so keep reading.

Also the longitude and latitude thing is just made up- not true in the slightest so don't get too bothered with it.

Please tell me what you think and Thanks to all who are reading and following; you guys are the best.

More will be posted soon so keep an eye out.


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Ten years old Natalia groaned as she landed on the mat yet again. She flipped back onto her feet and settled back into her fighting stance as her instructor came at her again; this time she was ready. Ducking under his punch, she delivered a swift strike to his groin before sweeping his legs out from under him. The Instructor landed on the mat before swiftly rolling back onto his feet. Standing back up, he shook his head as Natalia readied herself again. "That is enough for now Natalia. You're dismissed." She stood straight and bowed low before leaving the training room. Natalia made her way back to her room to wash and change before her next lesson. If one was to glance at her, they would see a sweet red-haired child- but taking a closer look they would see that all innocence had been drained from her long ago, replaced with a darkness that was never before seen in a child so young.

She arrived outside her classroom door five minutes early. It was better to be early than late; that was a lesson she had learnt four years ago and like all lessons she had been taught it through blood and pain, it was not something she was going to forget in a hurry. She knocked on the door, waiting for permission to enter by her instructor. A sharp "Enter" from the other side of the room bid her entry into the room. She opened the door and walked in. The room now held twelve desks instead of one; she had been moved to a class of girls instead of private lessons six months ago after her Master (Ivan) determined that she needed to learn how to socialize with others aside from her teachers as outside the walls of the Red Room she would need to fit in. She walked over to her desk, at the back, and stood waiting for the rest of the class to join. Five minutes later, eleven girls were standing behind their desks waiting for the lesson to begin. The teacher stood up from his own desk; "Sit" he commanded. They complied. The empty desk was noticeable in the small room but everyone avoided looking at it for fear of bringing the same fate of the owner on themselves.

"Today we will be studying the Art of Interrogations, Its many forms and its uses." He began the lesson with a lecture of what interrogation was and how it affects individuals. "Hands up. list the different forms that interrogation can take." Several hands shot up at once. "Liliya." He called first. She stood up and obediently answered, "Physical interrogation sir" the teacher nodded his head "good" he responded, Liliya retook her seat. "Natalia" he called next. She obediently stood up, "mental interrogation sir, also known as psychological torture sir." The teacher smiled at her. "Excellent Natalia" Natalia also retook her seat. "Psychological interrogation tactics are often more successful than physical torture, can anyone tell me why?" The girls eyed each other, waiting to see who would take the risk of failing. Natalia put her hand up; her teacher gestured for her to speak. Once again she got to her feet; "Psychological interrogation is often considered more successful because although it may take longer to achieve the goals, it gets more reliable intelligence out of the subject as they would not feel as compelled to tell you whatever they think you want to know. Their brain has less time to make up a convincing lie as it is already trying to differentiate between what is real and what is not; what is true and what is false" Natalia stood there waiting for the verdict. The teacher was silent for several minutes, just studying the girl in front of him. "Well done Natalia that is correct. Indeed not only does Natalia make a valid point; but also you need to be aware that the pain tolerance of each individual varies depending on their previous training therefore if someone has a high pain threshold then the interrogator could be waiting for days to even get the subject to talk and even then there would be no guarantee the subject would be telling the truth." The class was all expected to remember everything the teacher had said by memory therefore no sound of pens scratching the paper was heard; they were not allowed to take notes. Another hour went by with the girls discussing the most efficient ways one would go about getting information from their subjects in different situations. Finally the teacher shouted, "Dismissed" all the girls stood, bowed and walked out silently in single file.

Natalia was walking back through the corridors when she saw a small figure curled up in the corner of a nearby cell. Walking closer she realized it was her fellow student from Interrogation tactics. Slowly as to not frighten the girl, she walked into the room and sat down next to her. "Eva. What's the matter?" Natalia asked, placing her hand gently on the younger girls shoulder. Eva gasped in terror and attempted to jump out of reach; not realizing that it was Natalia and not a guard until she had calmed down. Eva had only been with the program a year but Natalia already knew she was not going to make it. "Natalia?" Natalia nodded "it hurts" she continued, pointing towards her shoulder and stomach. Natalia frowned and gently took Eva's arm in her hands; inspecting it closely she realized her shoulder had been dislocated. "This is going to hurt" she warned the younger girl before popping the shoulder back into place. Eva shouted out in pain as her shoulder was put back into its correct position. Natalia inwardly shook her head: this one will definitely not make it, she thought to herself.

"What did you do Eva?" she asked quietly as she placed an arm around the crying girl. "I was, I was defeated in combat" the girl stuttered, leaning into the older girl as she continued to cry. Natalia sighed "You need to learn to stop crying Eva and fast. It will only get worse the longer you do." That only made the girl cry harder and louder; Natalia continued to hug her tightly as she waited for the tears to stop.

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" a voice suddenly demanded from the doorway.

Natalia jumped up and stood to attention while Eva curled herself into a tighter, smaller ball then before. The voice belonged to one of Eva's instructors and she was furious. The instructor walked into the room and stopped several steps from where the girls were. She swung her fist into Natalia's stomach; Natalia doubled over for a moment before straightening back up, not making a noise. "I asked you a question, I expect an answer. Immediately!" she spat at her.

"Forgive me ma'am, I came across this recruit on my way to my own quarters and stopped to ask what the matter was. She told me. I put my arm around her in an effort to stop her crying before telling her she needs to learn to stop crying. Ma'am" Natalia replied tonelessly. The instructor eyed her for a moment before turning her attention to Eva; viciously kicking her before yelling at her to get up. Eva squealed in pain as the kick landed but nevertheless got to her feet. "Is what this recruit-she pointed at Natalia- said true?" she asked. "Ma'am yes ma'am" she responded quickly. The instructor glared at them both for a moment before ordering Eva back to the training room for another lesson. Eva went white as a sheet but obeyed, practically running from the room. The instructor turned her gaze back on Natalia; who still stood to attention in front of her.

"You seem to also need another lesson in both minding your own business and emotions." Natalia remained silent and emotionless; gesturing for her to follow, the instructor led her through the corridors to her own instructors study. Opening the door, she shoved Natalia before the desk. The instructor lifted an eyebrow at his fellow trainer. "She needs another lesson" she told him before giving Natalia one last glare as she left the room to deal with her own recruit.

Natalia stood at attention before her instructor. He walked round his desk with the same eyebrow raised. She answered the unasked question and told him what happened with the instructor and other recruit. Her instructor sighed once "I thought we were over this emotions business Natalia but it appears I was mistaken" his voice hardening as he finished speaking. "Follow me" he ordered her. She obeyed. He led her to a cell that she knew all too well. Gesturing she went in as he shut the cell behind her before leaving to collect the necessary tools.

He shortly returned with the hated whip. "Strip" he ordered. She complied. "Kneel" she obeyed. Taking his place behind her, he began her punishment. Natalia remained silent throughout; ignoring the pain lancing up and down her back. At last it was done. She remained kneeling; breathing heavily through her nose as her instructor walked back round to face her. Taking hold of her chin he forced her to look up at his unforgiving face "have you learnt your lesson Natalia? Or shall we continue" he asked her. "Yes sir, I have learnt my lesson. Will not happen again." He smiled cruelly at her before releasing her chin. "Good, get cleaned up and checked out by the medical officer." She quickly stumbled to her feet, bowed and left. Her instructor stared at her retreating back until she disappeared from sight, around the corner.

The next month was agony for Natalia; she had to be careful not to pull the stitching in her back, and at the same time maintain her usual level of ability. She actively avoided Eva during that time as she did not want to receive any more punishments on her behalf. Eva, for her part actively tried to seek Natalia out so she could thank her for comforting her and resetting her shoulder. It was a very elusive game of cat and mouse, a game that no one but them was aware of. The day came when all the stitches were due to come out, of which Natalia was immensely grateful for. She got them taken out and was coming out of the medical wing planning on going to the training room when suddenly Eva came out of nowhere and ran into her; knocking her to the ground. She gasped in pain as her injured back slammed into the concrete floor. Eva tripped over her and went down as well, though she leapt back to her feet and with a last glance back at Natalia ran off down the corridor. Not ten seconds later, Eva's instructor rounded the corner and stormed over to where Natalia was still on the ground. With a groan, Natalia picked herself up and stood to attention before the instructor. "Where is she?" she demanded of Natalia "where is Eva?" Natalia was not planning on getting into anymore trouble on Eva's behalf but something inside stopped her from telling the truth, "She ran down the corridor and turned right; not one minute ago Ma'am" she replied stepping aside to allow the instructor to pass unhindered. The instructor nodded her head once in thanks and took off down the corridor, turning right at the end. Wondering what she had just started, Natalia walked down the corridor and turned left. Continuing walking; she looked in every room she came to hoping to find Eva sooner rather than later. Finally she found Eva in the very last room on the corridor, hiding in the corner. Sighing once more; she walked into the room. "What" she said as she approached Eva, "did you do this time?" Eva flew at her, hugging her tightly and mumbled something into her clothes. Natalia looked down at the little girl in surprise before slowly hugging her back. "What was that?" she asked again gently, crouching down to make the girl look at her. "Don't let them hurt me again" she whispered again, hugging Natalia tighter.

Natalia stared at her in disbelief. What was she going to do? "Eva, Eva look at me" she told the girl. Making sure the girl was looking at her and listening she continued. "Eva, I cannot promise that they won't hurt you again, but I can promise I will help you as much as possible. Come and find me if you really need to; just don't get caught. Understood?" the seven year old girl nodded her head, sniveling. "Спасибо Natalia" she said with a smile before walking towards to the doorway. Natalia watched her go and shook her head; wondering what she had just committed herself to. She found out less than a week later.

A few days after her encounter with Eva, she found herself looking out for the younger girl, making sure she understood her classes and instructors. She hated herself for it. Slowly Natalia began to see Eva as the little sister she never had; she comforted her at night when she had a nightmare or when she was injured either by combat or punishment. She gradually grew to love and care for Eva and even went as far as accepting the punishments meant for Eva. It was all worth it. To her. Natalia loved to hear the sound of her laughing late at night when either Eva or she could not sleep. Laughter for such a foreign concept to her; she had almost forgotten what it was. It continued for eight months; this forbidden friendship that existed between them. For Natalia, it was the happiest she could ever remember herself being; she had a family again. For Eva, it was a relief; something to look forward to; something that seemed would last forever. How wrong they both were.

The instructors knew something was happening amongst the recruits; they just did not know what and so they set up a trap. One day the eldest girl, Olga, was taken out of lessons suddenly and did not reappear until several days later. She was different when she came back. She was distant and cold towards them all, even Yelena, whom she had struck up a friendship with early on. Natalia eyed Olga warily before glancing at Eva whom was staring at her with wide, worried eyes. Olga caught the look between the two. The next several weeks; all of them were punished for things that had remained secret before. Elena and Kseniya were the first two. They were dragged out of their bed late one night screaming; never to be seen again. The next morning their crime was said to have been writing notes to each other in secret and swapping them at meal times. And so there was ten left. Natalia knew Olga had informed the instructors of the notes existence as she was the only one not surprised when it happened. She began to watch her closely and urged Eva to act like nothing more than fellow recruits; she did not want to risk it. She did not know that she was already too late. The instructors were made aware of the friendship that had blossomed between them but kept quiet to watch and see how deep it went.

Unaware that they had been found out, Natalia and Eva resumed their friendship several weeks later; once they were certain they were safe. They were punished for other infractions along with the rest of the class; they all knew who was informing the instructors about them and all felt betrayed to one degree or another. Whatever trust they once shared for one another was now gone, all except for Natalia and Eva, both who refused to lose trust in each other despite losing it for everyone else. It was noticed. One month later, one late night Natalia was forcibly dragged from her bed and out into the corridors. Ivan was there as was her instructor. Not one word was said before she was dragged outside into the snow and cold. They threw her to the ground. She looked around and saw Eva receiving the same treatment. Her heart sank. She realized that they had been found out and there was no going back. Natalia stood and glared at her masters before running to where Eva was standing, shivering in the cold. Throwing her arms around the smaller girl, she whispered words of comfort in her ears before she was pulled off and hurled to the ground a second time.

Ivan was furious to say the least. "You girls are a disgrace. Not only are you traitors to your fellow students and instructors but you are traitors of Mother Russia." Both girls looked at the ground as Ivan continued to vent his anger at them. Finally he subsided and silence fell. "One of you will get another chance. You will fight each other. To the death." He told them quietly "if you refuse to fight, you will die." He took his time, studying them closely as horror made its self known on their faces. Natalia stared at Eva, her face conveying both horror and shock. Eva mirrored Natalia.

"Will you fight?" asked Ivan. Realizing they had no choice, they both nodded. Two knifes were thrown in the middle of them; they each picked one up respectively. Settling into their stance, the fight began.

They circled each other trying to gain time. Natalia threw some half hearted punches and was surprised when Eva did not. She barely had time to block the first few before Eva renewed her attack. "What are you doing?" Natalia hissed, fending her off again. Eva smiled sadly at her, "I know you won't attack me like you would another opponent unless provoked." She launched herself into the air and aimed a kick at Natalia's head which the latter dodged. "What? Why would want me to?" she replied delivering several strikes back at her with noticeably less force. "Because you won't kill me otherwise Nat" she replied sadly "You will win this fight regardless of what I do. Let me do this. For you; let me save you this time" Natalia stopped breathing for a second. The fighting stopped as both girls stood and stared at each other. Eva looked at Natalia with pleading eyes. Pleading with her to end it. The fight resumed. Natalia threw everything she had into her punches and easily slipped through Eva's defenses. She quickly disarmed her and knocked her on her back where Eva lay breathing heavily. Natalia looked towards where Ivan stood; pleading silently with him to not make her do this; He ignored her, "End it Natalia. Now! He ordered her coldly. Holding back a sob, she approached her fallen friend; knife in hand. Cradling her in one arm, she stared down at the only friend she had every known; "I'm Sorry" she whispered before her knife sang one last time.

Eva gasped as the cold metal slid into her. With her final breath she addressed Natalia, "Don't be s-sorry," she gasped "ha-have set me fr- fr-free…" Natalia watched as the life left the girl's body before gently setting her down in the snow. Standing up, she let her knife slip from her fingers and fall to the ground. She stared at nothing, her expression vacant and cold while time passed unnoticed around her. Something snapped deep within her and she knew she would never be the same again. Darkness consumed her; not one trace of warmth or happiness lingered as she sank to her knees by the dead girl.

The instructors and Ivan watched as events unfold from the side lines. It was only when dawn broke over the mountains that life returned to the scene in front of them. Ivan began to walk towards Natalia "Natalia" he commanded, her head snapped to him, eyes hard and unfeeling "Let's go" she obeyed. She gracefully got to her feet and followed him as Ivan began the walk back inside. The metal door slammed shut behind her; cutting off Eva and her humanity for good.

She was led upstairs to where the other Masters waited. Ivan walked in the room and took his seat on the raised platform. Slowly Natalia followed him into the room, stopping before them all she knelt. The masters studied her; curious about the girl whom Ivan himself had sponsored. "Rise" one commanded. She complied. Standing at attention; eyes cold as ice pierced them. All in the room suppressed a shiver as her eyes looked at them individually. "You betrayed us all Natalia" the same Master spoke; she stood there silently, motionless. "General Petrovich has seen fit to give you one final chance; fail us again and your life will end. Do I make myself clear?"

Natalia bowed her head, "Yes Master. Perfectly." She replied, her voice cold and unfeeling. He nodded. Another Master spoke, "If I was to punish you Natalia, how would you react?" Natalia looked directly at him and spoke, "My life is yours to do whatever you wish with it, if you decide I need to be punished, I will obey completely and utterly."

They all smiled. "Very good. Ivan, it will up to you to determine the appropriate punishment for your student here." Looking once more at Natalia he dismissed her. She bowed and left the room, waiting outside for her Master.

Once she was gone, the Masters looked at each other, "She's going to be dangerous" one Master stated.

"No Arkady, replied Ivan, "she's going to be magnificent."

Authors Note: well. Good bye humanity. Poor girl don't you agree? Until next time…

Спасибо- Thank you

By the way please note that by the beginning of the chapter Natalia has taken eight lives in total by combat- thus the darkness that was talked about earlier.

Will update soon so please keep reading and tell me what you think.


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

The girl looked down at the man before her; her face curling in disgust as he continued to beg for his life. He was already dead, why could he not except that? She thought to herself before raising her gun and shooting him between the eyes. The girl turned on her heels and walked away; not once looking back.

Natalia felt no remorse or guilt as she made her way to her extraction point near the outskirts of the town. She was a thirteen year old girl whom had already taken too many lives to count. She hasn't felt remorse since the night of Eva's death- she hasn't felt anything since. Except fear. Fear of her Masters and their punishments; she had long since learnt that there were worse things than death. It's ironic she thought to herself; civilians were taught that living was the greatest freedom one has whereas death was the nightmare that awaited everyone. They didn't know that life was a lie. Everyone served someone; no one was truly free. Except in death. Death was peaceful. Death is kind. Death meant freedom.

"Status report Natalia?" Ivan asked as soon as she got into the car next to him. Her face emotionless she replied, "Target eliminated. Intel collected as ordered, Master" handing him the leather bound book which she had liberated from her targets desk. Ivan nodded, pleased, before tucking the book into his jacket pocket. "Any problems?" he asked, "No Master, I dealt with the wife and children first; before moving in on the target. There's no one living who could report seeing me" she replied coldly.

"Good work Natalia" he told her quietly. Silence resumed for the rest of the journey. The car stopped outside the Red Room Facility and they stepped out. Ivan led her back into her home and instructed her to await him in her quarters while he went to deposit the book with the other Masters. She bowed and left.

"Tell me what happened Natalia" Ivan ordered her as he walked into her room. She quickly got up from where she was sitting on her bed and stood to attention. "At ease" he told her dismissively, waving his hand. She remained standing but in parade rest stance.

"I approached the targets home at 0600 this morning after surveying the home for three days; his family was in the children's bedroom while the target was in his study. I slipped into the grounds before unlocking the back door, disabling the alarms as I went. I climbed the stairs and dealt with the potential witnesses before making my way to complete my mission objectives" Ivan stopped her, holding his hand, "Details Natalia. How did you 'deal' with the witnesses?" he asked. Natalia looked at him, her voice cold she replied, "I slit their throats where they sat" Ivan nodded before gesturing for her to continue. "I told the target that I would kill his family if he didn't tell me where the book was; he told me what I wanted to know. I retrieved the book; making sure it was the correct one before informing the target that his wife and children were already dead and that he was going to join them. The target then started to cry and beg for life; I completed the mission by shooting him between the eyes. After checking I had left no trace of my presence I left the house and made my way to the extraction point. Everything went according to plan Master" She finished her report and looked at Ivan awaiting further orders. Ivan who had been listening attentively nodded his head "good work Natalia, have your mission report written up and submitted by dawn tomorrow" he nodded his head once more before leaving the room.

Natalia instantly got to work writing her report, knowing full well that when they said you had till dawn they really meant you had a few hours only. Two hours later she was down in the training room, mission report written and submitted, striking the living daylight out of the punching bag hanging in the corner. Unless she was in lessons, eating or sleeping, Natalia was to be found in the training room. Her instructors were pleased with her dedication and she quickly became the best fighter the Red Room had; even several instructors were no match for her, something that both pleased and worried the Masters upstairs. Her training in other subjects besides combat was progressing with equally impressive results. Her grasp of geography, languages, math and history was astounding for one so young; not to mention the equally unpleasant subjects namely poison resistance- which she had a high tolerance for. Natalia was truly on her way to becoming the perfect assassin that her Masters hoped she would be. For the next three hours she made her way through all the equipment in the gym before sparring with several other girls. Needless to say, she won, and injured one opponent so badly that she was sent to the medical officer. Natalia felt no pleasure or satisfaction when she defeated her opponents, rather she just moved on to the next one; seeking to improve.

The next morning she made her way to her first lesson: Interrogation Tactics. There were only seven of the original dozen girls left after the other girls had been terminated for one reason or another. Natalia stood behind her chair as normal waiting for her teacher to start class. The other girls filed in at some point, all mirroring Natalia. The teacher stood up and addressed them; "Today will be different from your previous lessons. Today will be a physical lesson as will all your future ones. Follow me." Barely the words were out of his mouth before he strode to the door. Opening it, he walked out without a glance backwards. All the girls hurried out after him. Their teacher led them down many corridors before stopping before a closed, metal door. He turned to face them. "Natalia, your Master is waiting for you inside. The rest of you, follow me; your instructors are waiting for you elsewhere."

The rest of the group continued down the corridor, leaving Natalia alone outside the door. Her face expressionless, she knocked three times before waiting for permission to enter. A harsh "enter!" was heard from the other side and so Natalia opened the door and walked in. the room was brightly lit with two chairs in the centre of the room and a long wooden table pushed against the left wall with a cloth spread out over it, covering whatever was actually on the table. Ivan was sitting on one of the chairs; he did not bother getting up, rather just waved his hand over the second chair, giving Natalia an unspoken command. She obeyed and walked calmly over to him and sat in the chair. The door slammed shut and still he did not speak; just studied her with cold eyes. "Today Natalia, you will begin your torture lessons." He at last spoke. "In order for you to be able to use these tools on your targets, you must first understand and become intimately familiar with them." His lips curled up slowly into a vicious smile as he watched her. Natalia's face did not change inside however; the familiar fear took root in the pit of her stomach.

Ivan stood up and began to slowly circle her; Natalia did not move a muscle. "All other lessons have been suspended until further notice; you will have no rest, food or water until I or another instructor sees fit to give you any. You are not to scream or show any other weakness; doing so will only make it worse on yourself. Is that understood Natalia?" he spoke softly as though informing her about something simple, like the weather. Natalia replied with a nod, "Yes Master". Coming to a stop in front of her, he snapped his fingers and two guards stepped forward. The guards approached her with thick rope which they proceeded to use to tie her to the chair, hands behind it. While they were busy securing her to the chair, Ivan had approached the table and had lifted the cloth, revealing a long list of painful looking tools. Running his hand gently over the weapons he watched Natalia's face for any reaction- there was none- before picking up a cattle prod. The guards returned to their place at the end of the room as Ivan approached her. He set the prod against her shoulder before flicking the switch; eight thousand volts flooded into her body. Gritting her teeth, Natalia writhed under the pain as it continued. One minute passed before Ivan removed it. Breathing heavily, sweat pouring off her entire body, she stared at Ivan, daring him to do worse. He complied. Once again the cattle prod was pressed against her should; in the same place. It continued for an hour; one minute of pain, one minute to recuperate, each time at a different part of her body. By the end; spasms were racking her body as she tried to ignore the pain.

Thinking it was over, Natalia closed her eyes; silently relieved. Her eyes snapped open again when she heard Ivan approaching again, this time with a long needle and hammer. Suddenly scared, she looked at him with wide eyes as he pulled his chair behind her. She could not see what he was doing which only made it worse when the excruciating agony started. Taking hold of one of her hands, Ivan jammed the needle under one of her nails. She screamed. His face turned to one of cold indifference as he shoved it in further. Once it was firmly in place, he took the hammer and proceeded in drive it all the way under until only the tip of the needle was visible. Never before had she felt such pain; utter agony tore through her body while she was strapped helpless to the chair, unable to stop it. One of the guards stepped forward and handed Ivan another needle. Taking it, Ivan began to slowly push it in under a second nail; her scream escalated as more and more needles were added until every finger held at least one needle. No matter how much she wanted to pass out from the pain; she couldn't. The torture lasted for hours as she screamed and screamed until no more sound came out. Tears rolled down her cheeks as time went by with no sign of the pain stopping.

The sound of hammering stopped. Silence fell in the room with only her breathing audible. Ivan walked back round to face her; his hands stained with her blood. "I told you not to scream Natalia" he said coldly, "now you have lost your privilege of a relatively painless night." Turning to the guards he ordered them to hit her every time it seemed as though she was falling asleep. "She will know no peace tonight. No sleep. Do I make myself clear?" The guards nodded their heads "yes sir!" he said before making his way to the door, he glanced back at Natalia "I will return in the morning, let tonight teach you the error of your mistakes Natalia, tomorrow perhaps, you won't scream." The door closed behind him, leaving her alone with the pain and guards.

She was so tired. All she wanted to do was let her head drop and eyes close but she couldn't. Every time the guards judged her to be falling asleep; a sharp pain somewhere on her body appeared. The night passed slowly; she was hit twenty three times by the guards before Ivan returned. He walked in with two other guards. The guards were carrying a metal bench between them, which they placed near the right wall. Ivan walked straight up to Natalia and grabbed her chin; forcing her to focus on his face. "Good Morning Natalia, good night?" he asked, smirking. She just stared at him; face blank. "Shall we continue where we left off last night?" he continued, then not waiting for an answer; strode around her and began to pull the needles out, one by one. Natalia offered a small whimper, Ivan stopped and tilted his head, "What was that Natalia?" he asked dangerously. She fell silent, not another sound fell from her lips as he resumed the pulling. Eventually he finished, gesturing to a guard, he indicated that he should bandage the wounds on her hands to prevent her dying of blood loss.

The guards untied her from the chair and threw her onto the ground. Ivan gestured for her to stand up; she tried but fell down again almost instantly; her feet devoid of all feeling as the rope had cut off blood circulation. Ivan allowed her to remain on the floor for a few minutes before dragging her to her feet. She remained standing once she was released; her feet burning as the blood flowed back through. Awkwardly she stumbled towards the bench as it replaced the chairs in the middle of the room. She gratefully sank down on it when she got within reach. Ivan snapped his fingers and once again Natalia found herself being tied down; however this time she was tied lying down with her hands underneath the bench, legs together and feet stretched upwards. Ivan came into view as she stared upwards. "Remember Natalia, not a sound." He told her before removing himself from her line of sight. Nothing happened for a minute. Suddenly something smashed into the soles of her feet; jarring her whole body. She gasped, more from shock than pain as the sensation became known the second time. Ivan struck her soles again with a thick piece of rope; watching for any sign of weakness. None were forthcoming. He struck again and again; the pain steadily increasing with every passing blow. Natalia squeezed her eyes shut as the pain reached her limit. Ivan saw which only made him strike harder. Tears stung her eyes as she pushed them back; determined not to show any further weakness.

Hours went by, followed by more until at last it stopped. The pain began to subside almost instantly as no more strikes were inflicted. Almost immediately after, Ivan came back into view. He nodded his head before telling her "your strength will be rewarded Natalia" he left her and her body alone for the next four hours; allowing her to sleep a little and recuperate. Water was given, though no food was offered. She drank cautiously as she was still held down; although a guard lifted her head up so she would not choke. All too soon Ivan came back. Her head was placed back on the bench and then held down by a strip of leather around her forehead. She didn't have time to wonder what was going to happen next before a piece of cloth was placed over her face and the water started to fall. Almost instantly she felt like she was drowning; her lungs burned, desperate for air, she thrashed as much as she could trying to dislodge the cloth to no avail. The cloth was only placed on her for thirty seconds before it was removed. She breathed deeply and hungrily when her access to air was restored but no sooner than she had taken her fifth breath was the cloth back and the torture resumed. This time the cloth was placed for a full minute before being removed again. Tears once again filled her eyes as her throat and lungs burned with fire as she took in raged breaths. The cloth was never placed on her for more than ninety seconds at a time, which she was thankful for; however the number of times they did it, more than made up for it. One hour later; it stopped.

For a single year, all Natalia knew was pain. Her tolerance for the pain grew rapidly as did the numerous tactics. Every day was different; the same devices were used many times but no pattern was discernable. During the weeks ahead, Natalia's fear of punishment and pain lessened until nothing but coldness remained. She was well and truly broken after the eighth month. She still felt the pain but she ignored it. 'Pain was an illusion of the mind' she told herself over and over again until she firmly believed it.

The year ended on a high note; well a low-note considering she was tortured- but it was only whipping again so it was a high-note for her. She was released from the DARK room; she dubbed it; and returned to her own quarters. Her back was still bleeding but she didn't care; shutting her eyes, she drifted off to sleep.

She awoke six hours later- a luxury for her- and slowly made her way down to the medical wing to get her back treated. With her back stitched up and bandaged she went to the mess hall to eat something. Anything. Her last long term 'treatment' was starvation for five days. She grabbed her food and sat down at an empty table. Looking round her she only saw three members of her own class; they all looked ragged and empty but alive. Shrugging inwardly she returned her attention back to her food. Once finished she made her way to the training room. The lights came on as she stepped in; welcoming her back. Natalia settled on the treadmill and began jogging; being careful of her back. She would never admit it to anyone, especially to herself but Natalia had missed this. She had missed the training and exercise. Missing was an emotion she told herself coldly; it is a weakness and so Natalia being the good soldier she was; cut it off, returning to her normal cold self.

She walked into her language class, two days later, tired. Taking her place at her desk she saw that only three desks besides hers remained. One girl had already been waiting when she got there whereas the other two walked in soon after she did. They all ignored each other; rather they focused their attention on the teacher who had stood up when all the girls had entered. "Sit" the teacher ordered "As you can see there are only four members of this class remaining, the other three girls were weak- they did not survive the year" his gaze shifted onto them individually as they sat at their desks, straight backed and emotionless; "By this time each of you know a different number of languages. "Yelena, you are fluent in eight languages; this is a good number. Well done. Darya, you are fluent in seven languages; well done. Alexandra" his voice turned hard, "you are only fluent in four languages. This is simply not good enough; if you have not improved within the month, the Masters have agreed that termination may be called for." Alexandra's face turned pale. Ignoring her, the teacher fixed his attention onto Natalia. She stared back at him; her face showing nothing. "Natalia, you are fluent in fourteen languages; we are very proud of you. Excellent work" he praised her. She nodded her head in thanks but remained silent. No one saw the jealous look Yelena shot at her before her face too returned expressionless.

The lesson continued with the teacher introducing them to Swahili; Natalia caught on quickly and soon became the best student in the class. It lasted for four hours before they were dismissed. They all stood up, bowed as one to the teacher before leaving the room; making their way to their next lesson.

Throughout the rest of the day and the week that followed; Yelena continued to shoot jealous glances at Natalia every time the other girl was praised or beat her at something; which was everything. Yelena was a good recruit but she was no match for Natalia. They both knew it; as did everyone else. Natalia never drew attention to it intentionally; rather she chose to ignore Yelena completely, not oblivious to the glares she had been receiving from the other girl. Yelena's jealously soon turned into anger as she watched yet again as Natalia beat her in a test set by their geography teacher. Natalia having received full marks and she got ninety eight out of one hundred.

One evening when they were all in the training room; Yelena could not hold it in anymore. Wanting to prove to everyone that she was the best; she challenged Natalia to a sparring match. The rules were simple, death was forbidden as was all paralyzing injuries; the winner was only announced when the opponent yielded. Natalia accepted and they both dropped into their fighting stance. Circling each other; the fight began. The other girls from both their own class and others stopped what they were doing and came to watch as did several guards. Yelena attacked first, Natalia simply side stepped but did not retaliate. She knew what Yelena wanted and so chose to infuriate her by not attacking at all rather just maintaining a defensive tactic. It worked. Yelena got more and more frustrated as not only did none of her blows connect but Natalia didn't seem to be all that bothered with the fight. Her blows got harder but wild, the angrier she got. Natalia remained unperturbed but finally began to deliver her own strikes; apparently bored of the fight; her strikes were systematically delivered and all connected with their targets. Yelena went stumbling back, reeling from a harsh blow to the face. Natalia pushed forwards, taking advantage of her opening. She delivered a flying kick into Yelena's stomach which sent her in turn flying before gravity made itself known and Yelena slammed into the ground. Natalia was on her in an instant; taking the fallen girls arm, she twisted it painfully until it locked into place, while she sat on her back, immobilizing the girl from any attempts to get up. "Do you yield?" she asked calmly. Yelena screamed out in anger and spat out "No! I will not lose to you again" Natalia shrugged her shoulders apparently expecting the response. "Suit yourself" she said before twisting the arm again; the snap of bones and the cry of pain echoed around the room. Her voice cold she asked again, "Yield?" Yelena nodded once, holding back another sob which threatened to escape. Natalia instantly let her arm go and got gracefully to her feet. Without another glance or word to any of them she left the room and made her way to the ballet studio.

Her teacher was a harsh woman, who demanded nothing but the best from her students. She was already there waiting as Natalia entered the room. Her teacher was secretly extremely pleased with Natalia, after having taught her for seven years she could say without a doubt that Natalia was her best student. "Your late" She told her girl harshly as Natalia quickly changed into her ballet clothes and shoes. Standing up she faced her teacher, "Forgive me Ma'am, I was in a sparring match" she said bowing "I will not be late again, I swear it"

"See that you are not Natalia, now go, do your stretches before we begin properly." Her teacher responded coldly. She obeyed and went off to the side and began to gently warm her muscles up; knowing that today's lesson was going to be unpleasant to say the least. She was right. Three hours later…

"Lift. On your toes Natalia." Her teacher told her. Natalia's feet were already sore and bloody as she slowly lifted herself back onto the tips of her toes. Relief flooded through her as she did it. Holding herself motionless, sweat pouring off her head as she waited for her teacher to instruct her to stop. Her instructor made her to stay en Pointe for another five minutes before allowing her to stop; Natalia collapsed on the floor. Her feet were soaking her shoes in blood. "That is all for today Natalia, your dismissed" her instructor told her before walking out the room leaving her alone. Her feet a bloody mess; Natalia was forced to drag herself to the medical wing to get bandages. Sparing no thought for Natalia or the pain; the doctor ripped the ballet shoes off and dunked her feet in hot water. She closed her eyes briefly before opening them again. Ten minutes later she was back in the training room, lifting weights with her feet tightly bandaged.

Life continued as normal for Natalia; well as normal as it got for her in the Red Room. No more torture resistant lessons were forthcoming during the next four months. It did not matter though; she had already been physically and mentally scarred for life. It was something that she was never going to forget. She thought that they could do nothing worse to her, that nothing can surprise her. Late one night she found herself learning that there was indeed one thing worse than the torture.

Fourteen year old Natalia found herself lying naked on the floor of her quarters; breathing hard and in pain. A lot of pain. She watched as her instructor pulled his trousers back on and leave the room. Alone, Natalia crawled over to her bed and pulled herself up before curling up into a ball with the blanket covering her and slowly drifting of to sleep. She never forgot that night or the nights that followed. Every night for the next week; her instructor visited her before leaving in the same manner. He told her that first night,

"Your body will be your greatest weapon Natalia, this is simply another lesson for you to learn" she understood that; she could learn lessons and obey orders. She thought nothing of the sex. It was just another tool for her to use; it was not an act of or for love. 'Love is for children' she thought to herself as her mind shut off for the night. She had been taught well.


	5. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

"Whom do you serve Natalia?" Ivan asked her coldly, surveying the young recruit before him.

"I serve Mother Russia and fulfil the wishes of the Red Room, Master" she replied tonelessly, standing at attention in the middle of his study, her face blank.

"What is your duty to Mother Russia? He asked

"My duty is to protect and defend her against all who threaten her both from within and outside her boarders, Natalia's response was automatic

"And what will you do for her? He further questioned as he began to walk around her.

"I will do anything Mother Russia requires of me" she replied

"How far are you willing to go in service to Mother Russia?" he slowly walked behind her and stood still waiting for her response.

"I would suffer any amount of pain in the service of Mother Russia, I will kill anyone whom dares threaten her and if need be I will give my life to defend her" Her reply was said tonelessly and without hesitation. A small cold smile appeared on Ivan's face as he considered her responses.

"Follow me Natalia, I have a gift for you from Mother Russia" he told her before walking out of the room. She followed.

He led her towards the medical wing. Though Natalia was curious as what possible gift would reside there, she nevertheless continued to follow him without question. 'Never question your orders Natalia' the voice of her instructor coming into her head as she stepped into a brightly lit room with Ivan. The room was bare except for a large table in the centre with half a dozen doctors in lab coated standing around it and several pieces of machinery which she had never seen before. The doctors fell silent as Ivan strode in, with her trailing behind him. Walking over to one of them- clearly the head doctor- Ivan spoke quickly, "is it ready?" the doctor nodded his head and replied, "Yes, yes it is ready" glancing at Natalia "is this the one? You know how the others have fared", his voice hinted at concern as he continued, "she is the best the Red Room has are you are sure you are ready to throw her away if this does not work?" She realised it was not concern for herself but rather of all the time and effort they had spent in creating her.

Ivan's face hardened, "it is because she is the best that I have chosen her for this; and if you are so concerned that she will not make it then you had better make sure your creation succeeds." He told the doctor coldly before walking back to where Natalia stood.

The doctor's face paled as he realised that this operation would not end well for him if it failed to produce satisfactory results. Hoping that the girl survived, he turned back towards the machinery and double checked everything was ready to go. Another doctor gave Ivan a nod as they all got into position. Ivan gestured for Natalia to approach the table; with a last glance at her Master, she obeyed. She got up and laid still on the cold, metal surface as the doctors set about restraining her. Leather strips were buckled tightly around her arms, legs, chest, waist and head; affectively immobilizing her completely. Once certain she was secure; the doctors then placed a metal helmet on her head before attaching numerous tubes into her body. The head doctor then turned the computer and started to initiate the programme, without looking at either her or Ivan he spoke, I'm first going to implement the protocol before giving her the serum. I want to make sure her body will be able handle it when the time comes."

"What exactly will the protocol do to her?" Ivan asked.

Still not looking at anything but the screen, the doctor replied coolly, "I will be essentially taking out anything relating to an emotion that still remains inside her. The mind will handle the serum better if it does not care what happens to the body." Finally looking at Ivan he asked, "Now with your permission" Ivan nodded his head, "do it". The doctor clicked the mouse once and the pain started.

Natalia screamed and screamed as her brain was picked a part from the inside and several undesirable aspects were cut off. Ivan watched as her body was subjected to spasm after spasm of excruciating pain under the restraints as she continued to scream in agony. Hours passed and Natalia fell silent, breathing heavily as her eyes closed. The doctors all looked on with nervous glances at both Natalia and Ivan. The computer showed that the protocol was at ninety eight percent complete. Another half an hour; the computer beeped signally the end; immediately the head doctor turned the machines off as the other converged on the unconscious girl lying on the table. One removed the helmet while others set about removing the tubes and taking her blood pressure. A few minutes later, she moaned quietly and slowly opened her eyes. The doctors quickly stepped back as Ivan approached the dazed girl. "Natalia!" he snapped; the girl's eyes quickly focused on him though they still looked out of it. The head doctor approached her slowly, "how do you feel Natalia?" he asked. She looked at him, seeming to consider her answer before replying emotionlessly, "I'm fine Doctor" the doctor nodded once, "any pain? Weariness?" Natalia frowned at him before her face quickly morphed back into her blank mask, "Nothing I cannot handle Doctor" she replied coldly.

Another doctor piped up, "How can we be sure the programme worked; this is how she would have reacted before the treatment." Ivan smile made several doctors take a step back, uneasy. "That won't be a problem" turning to the head doctor, "Doctor Yolkov; she cannot feel pain correct" he asked. The doctor nodded, "in theory yes, her pain receptors have been blocked of from her brain so although her body will feel it her mind will not receive any singles thus she will not actually feel anything" Ivan just nodded, he didn't care how it worked, as long as it did he was happy. "Stand up" he ordered Natalia. She got unsteadily to her feet; her body still shaking from the treatment. Going over to her, he quickly pulled his knife from his boot and shoved it in to her thigh. She didn't react; no sound, no wince; nothing. Ivan grinned triumphantly. "Well done Doctor" he congratulated the man as he and several others hurried over with bandages. Pulling out his knife, he allowed them to dress the wound while he studied his prized pupil with glee.

"Continue with the next phrase doctor. Give her the serum" Yolkov looked alarmed; General; it is too soon. Her body needs time to recuperate; her mind may not know her body is receiving pain but I assure you; she needs to rest." Ivan looked annoyed but conceded the point. "Very well, but I want her back here tomorrow at dawn" with that, he glanced once more at Natalia before leaving the room.

Once again Natalia was led back into the bright room. She had not spoken a word since she was dismissed from the medical wing last night. Not that she would ever admitted it; but she WAS tired and no matter if she could not feel pain- she did know when her body had has enough. At least they had left her with that. She figured she was allowed it because it made her better; weariness was an easy way of getting killed- this she knew. And so because of that, as soon as she had entered her quarters she had crashed out on her bed, not bothering to change first. When the guards came the next morning, she had still been asleep. They had yelled at her to get moving but did not physically harm her. They knew what where she going and so didn't want to mess it up. Five minutes later she had been out the door.

The same group of doctors were waiting for her as she entered. Gone was the machinery but the table remained. Another smaller table was next to it; the top was covered with syringes. Ignoring them and everyone in the room, she made her way to the table and laid down without question. The doctors swarmed over her, making sure the restraints were firmly in place and hooking her up to a heart monitor. Ivan walked it just as they were finishing. She glanced down once at Natalia before turning to Yolkov, "how good are her chances Doctor?" the doctor nervously wrung his hands, "I er don't know General. No one else has survived therefore I have no way of comparing how good her chance of surviving is" Ivan shot him a murderous look; "Remember if she dies so do you. Make it work" he snarled. The doctor paled again before responding, "This procedure will be much more painful than the mind protocol, thankfully after yesterday she probably won't feel it." "Probably?" Ivan asked, his tone dangerous. Yolkov gulped, "Well yes, the protocol can only do so much. The pain she experiences from this, may break down the barrier we have place between her receptors and brain." Sparing a brief look at Natalia he continued, "There is a slight possibility of that happening. The protocol may have to be placed on her again, though I must warn you that the second time it is placed on has to be the last time; otherwise too much damage would be done and her basic functions would be destroyed." Ivan was silent as he progressed this. "If there was a chance she may have had to go through the protocol again, why did we do it in the first place? He asked.

"Like I said before, we wanted to see if her body could handle that first seeing it was the lesser of two painful experiences." Yolkov replied calmly. Ivan was silent for a time before he sighed and gestured for him to continue.

The doctor picked up the first syringe and slipped it into her arm; hoping the procedure would save her from the pain, he pressed the plunger down and allowed the serum to enter her body. Natalia immediately tensed up as her blood felt like it was turning to ice. She gasped. The doctor glanced nervously towards Ivan before picking up the second one. In the same manner; the serum was plunged into her body. Immediately her blood turned from cold to hot as it felt like every drop inside her was on fire. That did it. The invisible barrier smashed into a million pieces inside her skull and the pain was upon her. Needless to say she screamed. Yolkov looked on unhappily as he delivered more and more serum into her body; increasing the pain ten times each time he did so. Her heart rate shot through the roof and the monitor let out an insistent beeping. He hesitated on the last syringe, shooting a glance at Ivan who had remained motionless throughout; he feed Natalia the last bout of the serum.

She never lost conscious; that was the worst thing. It was not the level of pain- though that was bad too; it was that she had to remain awake for the entire procedure. By the end she was just gasping and screaming silently as her voice had went hoarse half way through. Tears streamed down her face as time went by with no sign of it ending. Her vitals had reached dangerous levels and all the doctors were concerned; several had shook their heads stating that the shock after the pain was going to be too much for her to handle. 'No' she thought to herself, 'I'm better than that, I will survive' and with that determination she pushed through until at last the pain started to fade. Breathing deeply she attempted to get some control over her body before the full shock set it. She stopped straining under the restraints and lay motionless; eyes wide open as her heart began to slow down.

Half an hour after the last syringe was delivered, the doctors cautiously approached her. Her heart was still beating but was weakening; the shock now making itself known. The doctors looked alarmed as she flat lined. Alternating their gaze between her and Ivan, they quickly undid the straps and one started to give her CPR. Five minutes later there was no change. The one giving her CPR stopped and shock his head. Looking at his watch he announced, "Time of death, 16.43" Yolkov turned to face Ivan, a petrified look on his face, "give me one more chance, please. I can make it work next time" he begged. Ivan stepped forward, his face hard as stone as he pulled his gun out and aimed it at the doctor.

Just as he was about to pull the trigger, a faint beeping drew his attention. Startled, both he and the other doctors glanced back at Natalia. The beeping grew stronger as her heart began to pick up. Rushing over, Yolkov pushed the other doctors out of the way before putting his fingers to her wrist. Feeling a pulse, he left out a shout of joy before yelling "SHE'S ALIVE!" he laughed, relieved that he was now going to be permitted to keep breathing.

Ivan walked over just as her eyes shot open with a gasp. Natalia attempted to sit up but Yolkov pushed her back down, "Easy" he told her, "we need to run some tests" she laid back down obediently and permitted them to run their tests. Blood work, scans, DNA samples were all taken before she was allowed to sit up. Ivan approached her, "How do you feel?" he asked Natalia with a half smile on his face.

"Strange" she answered truthfully "My entire body itches, especially my back"

The doctors frowned, Yolkov approached her again, "please remove your shirt Natalia" she complied and removed her top, leaving her bra in place. The doctor walked around the table until he was behind her; stopping he gasped in amazement at what he saw, "Good God" he breathed as he watched every single scar Natalia had, had inflicted on her disappear. Ivan hurried round to see what he was staring at and he too looked utterly shocked, "The serum has worked even better than I'd hoped" the doctor told him. Walking back so he was facing her again, Yolkov told her what he had just witnessed before ordering her to put her top back on. Natalia shrugged her top back on and turned her head to look at Ivan. He just nodded at her before looking at the doctor, "How soon until the protocol can be implemented again?" he asked.

"Now" the doctor replied swiftly, "Her bio-metrics have been changed and thus her body self heals at an accelerated rate" Ivan nodded obviously pleased. "Then do it" he ordered. And so it began again. She felt every minute. 'It is worth it' she told herself 'it is in service to Mother Russia'.

For the next month Natalia was put through the most difficult tests the instructors could devise; she surpassed all expectations with ease. Not only had the serum given her accelerated healing properties but she found that her strength and agility had also been greatly increased as well as her intellect and other senses. After her success with the serum, the doctors attempted to replicate it with the other girls, none of them survived. Ivan began to send her on better, more difficult missions but each time for some reason he ordered her to the medical wing first. She was always strapped back on the table but after that she remembered nothing. She assumed it was for the best and so did not question it.

In between her missions, Natalia was placed back into her training regime with the other girls. Having only three other girls in her previous class survive the year of torture; the Masters had decided to combine three different classes to make a new one. This one consisted of twenty- four girls. Some of the girls were new but most were seasoned soldiers. They had seen each other around the facility and have done sparring with one another but they had never actually spoken to each other. Despite this, a bond had been forged between them; not one of friendship, they didn't get attached but one of comradeship. They understood that the girls standing besides them were the only ones who would ever understand what you were and what you suffered through.

An entire year went by. During that time Natalia had been sent on thirty mission- twenty eight of them had required her to kill at least one person. She didn't care. The training had taken an even more brutal turn since the serum; Ivan in particular wanted to see how successful both the serum and protocol was. The other girls were both secretly relieved that they were not put through the same training and jealous of her as she was given special treatment. Although the majority of their training was to teach them to be independent and rely on no one but themselves; the instructors did sometimes make them work together either as partners or groups. There would come a time when you would need some help they told them; however once the 'help' had fulfilled their purpose they should be disposed. The girls were taught how to work seamlessly with each other; how to manipulate people into helping them and ultimately how to betray them. The bond deepened over time as they began to truly understand each other as they worked together. Some of the girls foolishly started to become reliant on one another; the punishment they received was not pleasant but it served its purpose; everyone was switched around every lesson so no one could grow attached. It was especially difficult for the younger girls; they had not received the same amount of training as the older girls therefore were easily led astray.

Natalia never fell into the trap of developing any relationship resembling friendship with the other girls; she couldn't even if she wanted to thanks to the protocol however she could feel respect for them. The greater the determination and skill the other girls processed, the higher the respect she held for them. Those were the girls she would give pointers to; never praise, rather she told them their weaknesses. She was always cold when dealing with them but it was her way of showing some form of comradeship towards them. The girls appreciated the advice; it saved several of them from punishment.

"Duck!" her partner shouted as Alexander flung her knife at an approaching opponent. The knife connected with a solid THUMP as the girl fell to the ground; clutching her stomach. Natalia nodded at her partner before launching herself at the last girl standing. A simple strike to the temple and the girl fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes. A slow clap resounded from the corner as their instructor made his way forward. "Excellent work you two" he said, staring at Natalia and Alexander "but if I'm not mistaken there are still one part of the mission yet to be accomplished" he continued in a bored voice. Alexander looked at him confused but before she could move Natalia threw an elbow into her stomach, making her double over, before using the same elbow to strike her hard in the back; Alexander fell to the ground, gasping in pain. Natalia simply stood there, sparing not once glance at her former partner as her instructor smiled that chilling smile of his.

"FORM UP" the instructor shouted as he walked into the room. Recruits from all corners of the training room hurried over to where he stood; standing in formation and at attention. The instructor began to slowly walk down their ranks, inspecting each and every one of them carefully before standing to a stop where he previously stood. "The Final Initiation is upon each and every one of you" he started, glaring at them, "You will be sent into a room individually where you will be faced with the ultimate test. It is a kill test. You will be required to kill one of the girls standing besides you. Natalia!" he finished turning his gaze onto the girl. "Come with me, you will be the first" turning on his heels he walked out without another glance back at the other girls, still standing rigidly at attention. Natalia walked after him without hesitation, also not sparing a glance back. The instructor led her down the hall before entering a room on the right side. She followed and the door slammed shut behind her.

Ivan was waiting for her with a smile on his face. "My dear Natalia, welcome to your final stage of the Widow Programme" her face remained blank despite the confusion swirling inside her 'widow programme?' she thought. As though he could read her mind Ivan spoke again,

"The Widow Programme Natalia is- was- a programme to find and recruit young girls and turn them into something better than just normal children. You see, these girls would serve Mother Russia with loyalty and dignity and be extra special. The super serum we gave you was the key, sadly only you survived and thus the others are expendable. Each and every one of you had been fighting unknowingly for the title of 'The Black Widow' and only you my dear are worth it" he walked towards her with a gun in his hand. Handing it to her, he nodded at the instructor, who left the room.

"This is your final test Natalia" he whispered in her ear. "Each and every one of those girls will come in her, one by one, believing that you have selected them to die. Regardless if they cry or beg; you. Will. Kill. Them" he told her, punctuating the order at the end. She stiffened slightly before reply, "Yes Master" he nodded once before retreating out the door.

She only had to wait five minutes before the door opened once more and Alexander was shoved it. The door closing as swiftly as it opened. Alexander straightened up and looked wide eyed at Natalia; fear in her eyes. Natalia said nothing as she pulled the trigger. Alexander slammed back into the wall before slumping to the floor; a hole between her eyes. Two guards came in and dragged the dead girl from the room. The second girl came in; a new one- she started crying as soon as she saw the gun. Natalia disposed of her in the same way as Alexander. And so it went on; each girl shot dead by her and their blood joining the large pool gathering on the floor beneath her feet. Some girls cried, others shook in fear but only one fought back. Yelena. She fought hard and strong and so Natalia decided to kill her by her own hands instead of the gun. She kicked her to the ground before holding her in a choke hold; without hesitation she broke the girl's neck. The girl fell lifeless to the ground. For good measure; Natalia picked up the gun she'd dropped and shot her twice in the head. She stepped back and watched as the guards returned one last time and picked up her last fellow classmate. She watched but did not care. She felt nothing. Her instructor came back in the room. No Ivan.

"Well done. Needless to say you have passed your final test. Ivan orders you to report to medical before meeting him in his study." He told her before leaving again. She did what she had always done. She obeyed.

After visiting the medical wing, Natalia made her way to where her Master was waiting. Ivan's study was richly decorated with red carpet and he had the Soviet Russia flag was draped behind his desk. She came to a stop before the desk and stood to attention. From where he sat behind the desk, Ivan studied her closely.

"Do you know what you have to do?" his voice quiet and soft.

"Yes Master" she replied "his death must be sent as a message to all those who threaten Mother Russia"

He chuckled softly, "What is your name?" he leaned forward waiting for her reply

Her expression still blank, she replied, "my name is Black Widow"


	6. Chapter Six

Chapter Six

She held the swords tightly in her hands as she crept through the woods; tracking her victims easily. Eighteen years old and she had already had seen more darkness than most people did in their entire lifetime. Her targets were four girls who had earned disapproval from their instructors. Instead of just terminating them; the instructors gave them to her as target practise. She appeared out of nowhere in front of one of the girls. Stepping forward, she swiftly slit her throat before the girl had a chance to cry out. 'Too easy' she thought to herself as she stepped back into the shadows and continued the hunt. The second girl at least had the sense to run when she appeared ten feet away. Natalia simply threw her sword at the girl's retreating back; the sword piercing her heart, killing her instantly. Walking forward, Natalia pulled her sword out of the dead girl's body before moving on. She took down the third girl relatively easily: she threw her out of the tree she had been hiding in before jumping lightly to ground behind her. The girl didn't even see it coming before her head was detached from her body with one swipe. 'Three down one to go' she silently told herself.

The last girl was the youngest out of them all. At just seven years old; she actually was the best out of the four girls, having been able to evade her for longer than one hour. Natalia stalked the girl as she cautiously walked through the trees. As silent as a ghost, Natalia walked up behind her and held her in a choke hold; intending to break her neck, giving her a quick, painless death. She was just about to finish it when a voice shouted, "WAIT!" she froze. An instructor accompanied by two guards stepped out from where they were hiding and approached them. "Release her" he demanded. Natalia complied, instantly releasing the girl from her choke hold. The girl fell to the ground, coughing and crying. The instructor looked at her dispassionately before gesturing for the guards to take her. The girl was dragged away back up to the Red Room Facility. The instructor returned his attention back on to Natalia. She stood to attention; her swords sheathed on her back.

"Excellent work Widow as always" he told her, "I'm afraid I could not allow you to kill her. Master Arkady believes she has potential thus her continued existence is warranted." Natalia remained silent; she knew the girl had potential; anyone who could evade her for more than one hour deserved another chance.

"Come Widow, we have another girl in need of a punishment. She can make up the one you just lost." He said before turning round and making his way back; she followed.

Natalia continued to follow the instructor as he led her down into the basement of the facility. They walked down the corridor until he stopped at a closed, unmarked door near the end. He unlocked the door and opened it before walking in; Natalia close behind him. The door was closed after them and locked again. No escape. In the middle of the room was a large wooden tub filled with water. The girl, no older than ten, sat inside shivering with cold. Her lips tinged blue, suggesting she had been in there for awhile. The instructed gestured to Natalia to approach the girl. She looked up hoping Natalia was there to either save her or take her place. Upon looking at the cold face in front of her, the girl's heart sank with dread as she realised that Natalia was not bringing her the salvation she'd hoped. Dropping onto her haunches beside the tub, Natalia looked at the girl, "What is your name?" she asked quietly. The girl answered quickly, "Elena". Natalia nodded her head before returning her gaze back to the instructor, awaiting orders.

The instructor addressed them both, "You are both familiar with the term 'dunking' I assume?" both girls nodded; one indifferent the other scared but both understanding what was going to happen. Nodding once to Natalia, the instructor stepped back so to lean against the wall and to watch. Taking the nod as a command, Natalia grabbed Elena's head with both hands and dunked her head under the water. Elena struggled, trying to dislodge the hands holding her as her lungs burned. Her reactions turned frantic as she felt herself lose conscious.

Natalia pulled her head back up out of the water just as Elena was slipping into the darkness. The girl gagged and coughed as she was brought back into the world of air. One minute later however, her head was back under. Natalia continued to torture the girl for several hours before the instructor spoke up, "Enough" he said and Natalia obediently pulled Elena out of the water and released her onto the cold floor of the cell before stepping back, standing at attention. The instructor walked slowly towards Elena, still trying to recover, tearing and water together falling down her face. He bent down and held her chin, "Have you learnt your lesson?" he asked her. "Yes!" she gasped "yes I have" the instructor nodded and stood back up. A guard came into the room and dragged Elena back to her own quarters. Finally he turned his attention back onto Natalia. "You're dismissed" he said waving toward the door. Natalia bowed and left.

Natalia walked towards one of the more private training rooms; intending to get several hours of uninterrupted peace. Upon entering she found that unfortunately it was not empty but rather a class was taking place. Upon her being the only recruit to survive the Widow Programme last time; the Masters were trying again with other girls- so far none had been successful. Her face blank, she turned to walk back out again however a voice stopped her; "Wait!"

She turned back around and focussed her attention on the one that spoke. It was an instructor, one she had never seen before. The woman walked over to where Natalia was standing, "I am Instructor Zhirova" gesturing to where her twelve recruits were standing she continued; would you mind giving them a demonstration" it wasn't precisely a question more like a demand and Natalia knew it. She bowed to the instructor and replied,

"Of Course Ma'am" they walked back over to where the girl's were watching eyes wide open. The instructor stepped up, "Recruits!" She snapped "Today you will have the honour of working with the best Soviet Russia has to offer. This is the Black Widow; she will give you a demonstration in what hopefully you will learn sometime in the future" she finished speaking, stepped back and nodded to Natalia. Nodding back, Natalia addressed the recruits in front of her; her cold eyes inspecting what she had to deal with. "Listen up; you have all been here for at least one year therefore you should have some skill. I want you to surround me and attack me. Understood?" she spoke calmly and dispassionately, slipping into the personal of the Widow. The girl's looked at each other uneasy with the command but nevertheless complied, forming a loose circle. The Widow walked into the middle before settling into her fighting stance; waiting for them to attack. They did; three girls launched themselves at her simultaneously, she dropped to the ground, sweeping the legs out from under one before rolling to her feet and smashing her fist into another's stomach- there was a CRACK- the girl cried out as several ribs broke. The third girl was knocked out with an elbow to the head. More girls joined the fight as they saw their comrades being taken down with such ease. The Widow was like a whirlwind; systematically taking every single girl out who came within reach.

Every girl was on the floor in varying degrees of pain within a minute. The Widow simply turned to face the instructor and stood to attention, awaiting her next orders, ignoring the girls lying around her.

The instructor watched as her recruits were decimated before the Black Widow and was secretly glad that Natalia was theirs. "GET UP" she yelled at the girls still groaning in pain. She continued to yell abuse at them until they all were standing before her, back in formation and standing at attention. Natalia was still standing where she had stood up, now behind the recruits lines. The instructor gestured for Natalia to come forward which she did; striding quickly between the recruits to stand next to the instructor; several shied away when she got too close, scared that she would suddenly lash out. Silence fell in the room as the instructor said nothing else for several minutes, assessing the damage caused thanks to Natalia.

"Anna. Vera." She suddenly snapped. The two girls stiffened as they were called before stepping forward. "Go to medical and see to your ribs" she continued, waving a hand at them dismissively. The girls bowed and left the room hurriedly, eager to escape anymore damage which would most likely be dished out by the Widow.

Back in the training room the instructor was addressing the recruits again, "You performed as expected. The Widow will be taking over this lesson and will be teaching you several of her own moves. I expect you all to treat her with as much respect as you treat your instructors; is that understood?" she glared at them, eyes cold as steel as she waited for their reply, "Ma'am, yes, Ma'am" they chorused back at her. She nodded her head at them before turning her gaze on the young woman next to her, " I do not care what you teach them, but they had all better had learnt something by the end; am I making myself clear?" she whispered. The underlining threat was clear as day; she would be punished if any of the girls failed. With a slight nod Natalia whispered back, "Ma'am, yes, Ma'am", her eyes never leaving the recruits. The instructor continued to stare at her for several more seconds before making her way to the door; "I will be back at the end of the day" she threw over her shoulder as she left.

The Widow glared at the recruits, her eyes hard and unforgiving, as she took stock of what she had to work with; thankfully she had not injured them too badly.

"When I tell you to do something, you will do it without hesitation." She spoke to them all, her voice clear and hard. "I will be relentless in what I teach you, fail and I will personally make sure you regret it. My style of fighting as I'm sure you are aware is different than the one being taught to you, this is because I created it myself" her eyes searching the recruits, making sure they were following and understanding what she was telling them, she continued, "I blended in several different martial arts with my gymnastics and acrobatic skills in order to create something new and deadly; today I will be teaching you two of the most basic yet deadly moves that will incapacitate any opponent you find yourself pitted against. Now spread out."

She waited as each girl went to claim a mat. "Watch" she commanded, when everyone was in position. The Widow moved with the grace of a dancer and the deadliness of a snake as she moved seamlessly from one position to another with impossible speed and agility. The recruits openly gasped as the display, wondering how on earth they were meant to learn it within a day. The display itself was an incredible feat with the Widow's body twisting into impossible looking positions and the girls could clearly see how effective it would be against an opponent. When she was finished, she stood and watched their reaction as their faces slowly turned from amazement into horror as they realised that they were expected to copy. "As you can see, the moves I just showed you require a high level of concentration and balance. I will go through it step by step and you will copy." She glared at them, daring them to say or do anything against her orders; however none were stupid enough to anger the Black Widow. And so for the next three hours, the Widow guided the younger girls in perfecting the moves she had chosen to teach them. Most of them were successful when she had them perform it on another however two of them were seriously lacking in skill. If she was still capable of feeling, the Widow would say she was irritated however since she could not, she kept her earlier promise and was absolutely relentless. Every time they failed she would order or drag them back to their feet instantly and make them redo it again and again.

By the fourth hour she was resigning herself to face whatever punishment she would no doubt be given by the instructor as the lesson was ending and still the two girls could not perform to a satisfactory standard. If she was allowed to after she would seek her retribution on the girls for her punishment.

Unbeknownst to her, she was being watched via camera by the Masters upstairs.

"Is she to be punished?" Ivan asked the others, "It is clear she is doing everything she can to teach them" most of the Masters nodded their head in agreement to what Ivan was saying, however Arkady shook his head. "She still has failed" he argued, "she may be relentless but you can clearly see her holding back when she uses violence as a means of persuasion." The other Masters nodded again, clearly conceding the point.

"What is to be done then?" another Master asked, "do we punish her if she fails to deliver by the end of the hour or not?" The Masters glanced round at each other, clearly uncertain whether to support Ivan or Arkady. Ivan sighed,

"I concede Master Arkady's point; if she fails then instructor Zhirova can punish her anyway she deems necessary, however it will be up to the instructor and the instructor only to determine whether she has failed or not" Every Master nodded his head in agreement, even Arkady.

Back down in the training room, the door burst open and Zhirova walked back in, signalling the end of the lesson. As one, every person in the room stood to attention and bowed; The Black Widow included. The instructor walked to the front of the room and took her place next to Natalia. "I will instruct you individually to perform what you have learnt, firstly however," she turned her head to look at the Widow, "you will show me what you have taught them" the Widow nodded and walked to a spare mat and demonstrated exactly how the move should be executed. When she was finished she walked back to her original position, next the instructor. Ignoring her, the instructor turned back to the recruits and called one of them out. The girl nodded and did the best she could in copying the move; it lacked the grace and finesse of the Widow but it was successful. The instructor nodded and turned to another girl and she too showed what she had learnt. One after another each girl gave it their best shot; most gave a satisfactory demonstration however one of the two who had repeatedly failed fell over half way through; the other somehow managed to pull it off. The Widow's posture stiffened as the girl stumbled and tripped over her own feet. The instructor ignored her and addressed them all, "Form up!" she called, they all scrambled to obey.

Looking at them all, her face devoid of all expression she spoke, "Well done to the majority of you, you actually did better than what I was expecting." Her voice turned hard as she continued, "however, one of you let your class down as well as your teacher" The girl who had fallen- Elisa- started to shake with fear in anticipation of what awaited her. "Elisa" the instructor snapped, "because of your inability to learn you will be punished" The girl's eyes widened in fear at her words. Zhirova turned and slowly began to circle the Widow, still talking to the recruits, "and unfortunately, because of your failure Elisa, The Widow will also be punished since it means that she too has failed because she could not teach all of you to a satisfactory standard." The Widow remained motionless, no expression visible and staring ahead while all this was going on. All the girls actually looked dismayed upon hearing this; they had all appreciated the Widow and her ways of teaching, the lack of violence towards them was the main reason. "The rest of you are dismissed, save Elisa" the instructor snapped at them, standing in front of the Widow but facing them. All the girls bowed and most left, leaving Elisa standing alone; shaking and pale.

Zhirova first addressed Elisa, "So what shall I do with you?" she mused to herself quietly. She walked back to the doors and called two guards in. She ordered them to take Elisa to the Black room down in the basement. Elisa let out a whimper as the guards approached, knowing full well what the Black Room entailed. She screamed as she was forcibly dragged from the room by the guards, the doors slamming shut behind her, cutting her off suddenly. Silence fell in the room.  
"And now, you" the instructor said, turning her full attention back onto the Widow.

"You would have succeeded if you had used more violent means to encourage them, it seems that I must teach you the error of your ways and demonstrate exactly how effective violence can be." She smirked at the young woman before her,

"Follow me" she ordered and with that she turned on her heels and walked back through the door, Natalia obediently trailing behind her.

The instructor led her through the twisting corridors of the Red Room until they came to the front doors of the facility. Two guards accompanied them outside, both holding a whip. The group walked forty minutes in the freezing winter evening until coming to a stop in a large field filled with snow. "Strip" Zhirova ordered; Natalia obeyed, taking off her uniform until she was standing in nothing but her undergarments. "Them too" the instructor ordered again, gesturing to her bra and underwear; Natalia complied and took them off. She stood naked in the snow, back straight and no sign of distress on her face. She had learnt long ago that there was no need to be self-conscience with her body around both men and women; it was a weapon nothing more.

"Kneel" Zhirova ordered, her face mirroring Natalia's, no emotion flickered in her eyes as she watched the woman obey. Natalia slowly got down on her knees; her back still straight and looking straight ahead at the instructor. With a nod from Zhirova; the guards uncoiled the whips and began the punishment. CRACK! CRACK! The whips cracked against her skin one after the other, leaving no time in between each strike. Natalia kept still, her face still showing no sign of distress or pain as she stared at the instructor.

Walking forward Zhirova held up a hand and the whipping ceased; she walked around the kneeling woman to take stock of the injuries. Shaking her head, she shoved her over so that Natalia was now laying face-first in the snow. "I do not think you have learnt your lesson yet Widow" she coldly told her before gesturing for the guards to continue. The punishment resumed, this time however the lashes were delivered not only to her back but to her legs as well. Not once did she move. Not once did she make a sound. The punishment went on and on until darkness fell. At last the whipping stopped; the instructor ordered her to stand. Natalia pushed herself back onto her feet with her arms, and remained there until she was commanded to do otherwise. The instructor circled around her again, assessing the damage; nodding to herself satisfied, she faced Natalia again, "your punishment is not yet over. Your ah 'abilities' enable you to survive in extreme situations, therefore I hereby order you to remain standing where you are until I tell you otherwise. Understood?" Natalia nodded her head stiffly, "Ma'am yes, Ma'am" she replied quietly. The instructor gave her a cold smile before starting the walk back to the Red Room; the guards left as well, leaving her alone. Zhirova knew there was no need for a guard to remain behind because she knew that Natalia would never dare to disobey orders, of that she was certain.

The entire night went by, Natalia obeyed the order to the letter, she didn't move a muscle while she stood there; slowly freezing to death but she didn't care. The worse thing about the protocol was that not only did it make her impervious to pain but it also made it impossible for her to disobey an order regardless of her own wellbeing. Her lips were blue when the sun rose that morning; her eyes bloodshot and body covered with blue/purple patches due to the cold. The lashes had stopped bleeding and were half-healed by the time the instructor returned. Zhirova stopped several feet away, observing the freezing woman before her with a cruel smile on her face.

"You're still alive, that is good. Put your clothes back on Widow and come here" Natalia obeyed, shrugging her freezing, wet clothes back over her body before stumbling over to where the instructor stood. The instructor grabbed hold of her chin and looked at her straight in the eyes before speaking, her voice low and dangerous,

"I trust you learnt my lesson well?" she waited until Natalia attempted to nod to show she understood before continuing, "Next time I give you a task, you will complete it by any means necessary; fail to do so and I promise you the next lesson you receive will make this look like a light slap in comparison. Do I make myself clear Widow?"

Natalia opened her mouth, "Ma'am yes Ma'am" she whispered, subdued. The instructor saw it in her eyes and her smile widened; she released her grip on Natalia's chin and began to walk back. Natalia followed, half walking, half stumbling.

Fifty minutes later, Natalia walked into her quarters and collapsed on her bed, exhausted. She slept for eight hours before opening her eyes and dragging herself into her bathroom for a hot shower. Ten minutes later she was walking into the mess hall, grabbing some food and sitting down at the back table away from everybody else. She had just started to eat when a younger recruit came over to her,

"Instructor Zhirova requests your presence in training room three, Black Widow" the girl told her respectfully, fully aware who it was she was addressing. Natalia immediately stood up and left, ignoring the girl and food long forgotten as she hurried to the training room. Coming into the room she found it empty; she stopped in the middle and began to wait. Two hours passed and still no sign of Instructor Zhirova, she did not dare to move although her body was telling her it needed some substance, having gone almost forty- eight hours without eating anything. Zhirova finally entered thirty minutes later; as soon as she saw the instructor, Natalia stood to attention; her eyes staring straight ahead.

"Good afternoon Widow" Zhirova said, her voice cheerful as she walked to where Natalia was standing, "have you recovered from your little night out?" her lips curled into a smirk but her voice lost none of its false cheerfulness. Natalia simply nodded her head and remained silent.  
"I have another task for you; do you think you can fulfil it this time?" gone was the cheerfulness, only coldness remained. "Ma'am Yes Ma'am" Natalia replied quickly. Zhirova nodded her head once.

"Then listen closely Widow, this is what I want you to do..."

TO BE CONTINUED NEXT CHAPTER...


	7. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

"As you know Widow, the first elimination test is coming up for my class" she stopped waiting for confirmation that Natalia understood, Natalia nodded, "Your task is simple, you will lead the hunting party to track the recruits down, the first three to be found will be the ones eliminated ; you will capture and bring them all to me. After they are all found, you will be the one to kill the three. Do you understand?"

Natalia, still standing at attention; her face a blank mask replied, "Ma'am Yes, Ma'am" Zhirova nodded her head once, "good, I will send for you when the test is initiated, until then; your are dismissed"

Natalia bowed and left the room, making her way back to the mess room to eat something. Her food from earlier that day was still on the table, a glance at the kitchen showed that she had no choice but to eat it- the kitchen was closed. She sat down at the table and mechanically ate the porridge, not caring that it was cold or disgusting. She had been taught long ago to eat what she was given; if it was edible, it was good enough for her. Finishing the meal, Natalia went to visit her instructor for her language lesson; she needed to catch up on the time wasted due to her punishment.

"I trust this will be the last time you miss your lesson with me Widow?" asked the teacher as she sat, back straight, at her desk. "Yes Sir" she replied tonelessly, looking her teacher in the eyes. "Good. Now today we will be starting Latin. Latin may be considered a dead language however it is still a very useful language to learn, so your Master has impressed upon me of the importance of you learning it."

The teacher turned to the black board behind his desk and began to write out the Latin alphabet. Thanks to the serum, Natalia now had a perfect memory and could learn anything faster than an average human therefore by the time the lesson ended four hours later, she had mastered a vocabulary of more than five thousand words. The teacher was especially pleased with her progress, stating that by the end of the month she will be fluent and could began anew on another language. Natalia could now speak and write twenty languages fluently, a remarkable number for one so young.

She left the room after being dismissed and returned to the training room from earlier that day. When she got there she preceded to systematically go through every piece of equipment scattered around the room before turning her attention to the mats. Three hours later, after she had just destroyed the last punching bag, Natalia returned to her quarters to sleep. Her night was a dreamless one, her mind surrounded in shadows and darkness, like her heart. Seven hours of uninterrupted sleep was gifted to her that night; she was woken by the sound of her door slamming open. She scrambled out of bed, instantly awake and dropped into her fighting stance. She took in the intruder in a blink of an eye before standing quickly at attention when she saw it was Ivan.

"Widow" he greeted her, his face blank. "Come with me, I have a mission for you" he continued before walking back out the room. The Widow followed, ignoring the fact she was only clothed in her sleepwear. Ivan led her to his study, settling down in his chair while she remained standing before his desk, still at attention. Ivan studied her silently for a few minutes, taking note of every little detail of her appearance. Nodding to himself, apparently pleased with what he saw, he began to talk,

"Your mission Widow, is to track down and seduce this target" pushing a picture of a man in uniform across his desk towards her, "after you have seduced him, I would like you to get the nuclear missiles codes from him before eliminating him. You are to complete this mission by any means necessary, is that understood?" He gazed sharply at her, awaiting her response.

"Yes Master" she responded emotionlessly, staring straight at him. Ivan nodded once more before dismissing her. The Widow bowed and left the room; she made her way back to her quarters to get changed. Ten minutes later, a knock on her door signalled that she was to make her way to her designated vehicle. Opening the door she found two guards waiting for her. One gestured for her to follow and the trio began the short trip down to the garage. Her luggage was awaiting her at her final destination, she was told as she was handed a folder containing her alias and other information she was deemed fit to know. She got in the back without a word, a guard followed before the car began its journey to the train station.

The car stopped near the entrance and she got out alone, she was to continue on her own. The rest of her journey was uneventful; the ticket had already been brought for her so she just boarded the train and waited until it pulled out of the station. Her mission was situated in Moscow; a gala was taking place at the Hotel Marcue and apparently her mark was on the list to attend. The Red Room had managed to also get her on the list under the name, Nadine Isayeva. The train arrived on the correct station at 0900, one hour ahead of schedule. The Widow met her chauffeur (a guard) by his car and together they sped through the city to the Hotel. The gala was not starting until seven o'clock that evening and so Natalia spent the day playing the part of a bored heiress with too much money and not enough to do. She went shopping, ate lunch and generally took advantage of the Red Room's funding.

At seven o'clock exactly Nadine Isayeva walked gracefully into the ball room where the gala was being held. She was beautiful; a fact which did not go unnoticed by both men and women alike already there. Her flaming red hair hung loosely down her back while the gorgeous black dress she wore hugged her figure in all the right places. The Widow surveyed the room with a covert eye as she walked towards the bar. She felt the eyes of greedy bastards following her across the room along with the hostile eyes of their jealous wives. She didn't care. She had her mission and that was the only thing the Black Widow cared about. "

водка. Двойной". She told the bartender as soon as she sat down on the stool by

the bar. The bartender immediately got to work and a few minutes later her double vodka sat in front of her. She sipped her drink as she leaned against the bar scanning the room for any sign of her mark. Several men approached her while she waited; with her favourite 'I will kill you-glare' the men diverted their original path into a new one. She smirked to herself as the fourth man found himself a victim of her glare.

Glancing around once more, she finally caught sight of General Kulakov- her mark. Finishing her vodka, she stood up and began to mingle with the other guests, gradually making her way over to where he stood. She laughed and chattered with the women and exchanged pleasantries with the men, all the while aware of where exactly the General was. Several meters away from her mark she suddenly looked up in his direction. She caught his gaze and gave him a brilliant smile; he responded in kind and began to make his way over to her. The Widow stayed where she was, smile fixed on her face as she calculated exactly how she was going to complete the mission. "Добрый вечер мисс ...?" (Good evening miss...?) He stopped waiting for her to fill in the missing information. "Isayeva" she responded a small smile on her lips "Nadine Isayeva" she extended a hand which he grasped eagerly before bringing her hand to his lips and briefly kissed it. "Рад познакомиться вы пропустите Исаева, я Генеральный Кулаков" (A pleasure to meet you miss Isayeva, I am General Kulakov)" they began to strike up an animate conversation as to what they did and what brought them to the gala. The Widow played her part flawlessly, flirting subtlety with the General while getting information which civilians would not normally be privy to. "Вы хотели бы танцевать? (Would you like to dance?) He asked her as the orchestra struck up a slow melody. She laughed and nodded before taking his offered hand. He led her onto the dance floor and twirled her around before gently placing his hand on her waist and taking her other hand in his. Just as delicately she placed her hand on his shoulder and together they began to dance.

They were soon joined with other couples as they twirled around the room, occasionally commenting on anything that they happened to be talking about. An hour flowed by and the poor General was well and truly hooked by the red- haired woman. They were sitting down at a table, laughing and talking with each other and other patrons when the Widow made the final move to ensnare him into her web. She leaned towards him closely and whispered in his ear, "Мне скучно бы вы хотели, чтобы повеселиться? (I'm bored, would you like to have some fun?" the General blushed and replied, "Что же вы имеете в виду?" (What did you have in mind?" The Widow smiled seductively and took his hand in hers before pulling him to his feet and leading him out of the ball room. The General went willing as she led him upstairs into an empty suite. The General instantly walked over to the bed and began to take his clothes off. The Widow however had other ideas, she walked over to the built in bar and produced a bottle of expensive champagne. "Пить?" (Drink?") She asked while already getting two glasses out. The General turned round and nodded his head before getting back to undressing himself. He missed the eye roll the Widow threw at his back as well as the poison she slipped into his champagne. The poison was not life-threatening; rather it compelled the victim to tell the truth when asked specific questions. The poison was a creation of the Red Room and one she had been subjected to numerous times when they thought she was lying to them about something; needless to say she never lied to her superiors.

She walked over to where Kulakov was laying- naked- on the bed and handed him his champagne before walking over to the other side of the king-sized bed and sitting next to him. They clinked glasses and sipped their drinks. "Приходите давайте повеселиться, то" (come lets have some fun) Kulakov told her before setting his finished glass aside. The Widow laughed but copied him and began to undress. She slid out of her dress and stood naked besides the bed. The General suddenly changed from being a gentleman into a monster as his eyes took in her beautiful body. Roughly he pulled her on to the bed and climbed on top of her. The Widow, keeping in character let out a gasp and tried to push him off "выйти! что ты делаешь?" (Stop! What are you doing?" the only response she got was a slap to the face before her legs were being force open. The poison took up to half an hour to work and so the Widow had to keep up appearances for the mission's sake. The Generals eyes gleamed with hunger as he ravished her body. His breathing got faster and faster as time went by, he placed his hand over her mouth as she began to scream. The Widow did not care what happened to her body however Nadine Isayeva did. Suddenly Kulakov stopped and groaned as the poison made itself known to him; quickly the Widow shoved him off her and knocked him unconscious. She gathered up her clothes and put them back on before carrying the still sleeping General over to one of the chairs and tied him tightly to it with a curtain cord. She dragged another chair over and sat down facing him, waiting for him to wake up.

Ten minutes later, the General groaned and opened his eyes. He looked round dazed for a moment before his eyes locked on to the Widow, sitting patiently in the chair, her face a blank mask and her eyes cold and hard. Kulakov tensed and tried to get up but failed as he realised he was tied up. He slumped back but glared at the woman facing him, "Kого ты сука? чего ты хочешь?" (Who are you bitch? What do you want?" he spat at her. The Widow didn't react nor did she speak; instead she just watched silently as the General began to get angry. "Oтветьте меня!" (Answer me!) He demanded angrily. The Widow raised a perfect eyebrow before replying, "Вы не в том положении, чтобы выдвигать требования Общие. Однако, так как Вам так хочется знать, кто я есть, я обяжет. Меня зовут Черная вдова." (You are in no position to make demands General. However since you are so eager to know who I am, I will oblige. My name is Black Widow.) The General stared at her, stunned for a moment before a sneer made its way on his face, "Это должно напугать меня?" he asked (is that meant to scare me?) "Da" (yes) The Widow replied simply. Silence fell for another few minutes as they locked each other into an intense staring match; the Widow won. "Скажи мне. Каковы коды для России ядерных ракет?" (Tell me. What are the codes for Russia's nuclear missiles?) she asked him directly. The General blanched at the question and opened his mouth to tell her to go to hell however he found himself blabbing every single code he knew to the woman with the cold stare. Mentally he tried to stop himself however, thanks to the poison in his system he could not. Finally he ran out of codes to say and shut his mouth looking exhausted. "Что это было? что ты сделал со мной?" (What was that? What did you do to me?" he demanded, The Widow ignored him and got to her feet. Now she knew what she came here for; it was time to clean up and leave. Without another word she stepped forwards, a knife appearing in her hand suddenly and slit his throat. The General's eyes had widened as the knife appeared and a scream escaped his lips before his voice box was cut off. The scream died on his lips as the life left his body.

Without a backward glance at the corpse, the Black Widow let herself out of the room and walked to the suite next door- her own- and slipped inside. Without bothering to turn on the light she went over to her suitcase lying on her bed and picked it up before leaving again. She went down the stairs, out the back exist and towards the waiting car across the street. The driver got out and took the suitcase as she opened the door and climbed into the backseat. Five minutes later, she was halfway towards the train station with no one the wiser that she had left. The cleaner was going to have one hell of a shock tomorrow morning but by then she would be back at the Red Room. The luggage was going to remain in Moscow as it may be needed for future missions. Attempting to run away from the Red Room never crossed her mind as she boarded the train to take her back home; sometimes the protocol worked too well. The journey was spent visualising her report, ready to be written when she got back; the Widow never let a moment go by where she was not doing something that could be done at that moment. She changed vehicle again and soon found herself walking into the large garage doors which served as the front doors to the facility. Ivan was waiting for her, a smile of triumphant flickering across his face as he watched his favourite creation walk towards him. The Widow bowed low to him before standing at attention. Without a word Ivan turned away and began to walk towards his study, the Widow following.

Less than twenty four hours later and The Widow found herself in the same position she was in before the mission. She was currently relaying every code she had managed to attain from the dead General to her Master; Ivan was listening intently as he wrote down everything she told him. When she finally fell silent, Ivan finished the code he was writing and put the pen down. He looked at her silently before speaking, "Full Report. Now" he told her. The Widow opened her mouth again and began to run down everything that happened during her mission; she didn't miss out one detail. Ivan nodded occasionally and raised an eyebrow as she got to the more intimate parts of her mission. When she was finished, Ivan stood up and circled her. "Tell me my Natalia, does having sex with your marks make you uncomfortable in anyway?" he asked.

"No Master" she replied tonelessly, "My body is a weapon. Sex is another weapon I have at my disposal; if it helps me to complete my mission I see no reason why I should not use it" A sick, sadistic smile formed on Ivan's face as he listened to her answer.

"Very well. If I was to give you an order to let me have my way with you right now, would you comply?" he asked her. Natalia knew where this was headed; it was not uncommon when she had to 'please' her Master or instructors in this way.

"I would Master. I am a tool to be used as you see fit." She replied. The smile grew wider and even more sadistic on Ivan's face. Chuckling quietly to himself Ivan suddenly ripped her dress off her and threw her over his desk. She did not dare to move. He took his own clothes off and proceeded to rape Natalia; not caring how much he was hurting her. It went on for hours. Natalia could feel him inside her but not the pain that she was sure was entailing the experience. At last her Master was satisfied and she was thrown on to the floor. "Get Out!" he screamed at her as he began to put his clothes back on. She did. Not even bothering to grab her ripped dress; she crawled out of the room before running back to her quarters. Natalia took a long (cold) shower as she washed both the General and her Master's touch from her skin. After twenty minutes she climbed out of the shower, quickly wrote up her report, submitted it and fell into bed; she was already asleep as her head hit the pillow.

The next morning she was woken up by a young recruit knocking, rather violently on her door. With a groan she got out of bed and walked over to her door; opening is up she came face to face with a girl around fourteen years old, already in uniform. Glaring at her, Natalia waited silently as the girl got over her shock by the door being yanked open suddenly. Coming back to herself, the girl finally realised who it was she was looking at and visually paled at the pissed off face of the Black Widow in front of her. "What the hell do you want?" Natalia growled at her. The girl took an involuntary step back before stuttering her answer out, "Yyou are wanted... wanted in training room by the instructor" Natalia rolled her eyes, "Which training room and what instructor?" she snapped at the poor girl in front of her.

"Um three. Training room three with instructor Zhirova" replied the girl, shaking in fear. Natalia shook her head slightly and told the girl to wait outside while she got changed. Two minutes later, she emerged from her quarters and began to make her way to training room three; the girl hurrying behind her.

As Natalia walked in she found Zhirova teaching the same class as last time. The one she got punished over. She walked into the room and stood silently behind the recruits; none heard her as she approached. The instructor glanced at her briefly; Natalia bowed and stood to attention. Zhirova smirked slightly as still none of her recruits were aware of the newest member in the room. "Widow, thank you for coming" Zhirova told her; all the recruits looked around at that, several jumped as they saw the Black Widow just a few feet from where they stood. The smirk grew as Zhirova saw their reaction; she gestured for Natalia to join her. Natalia walked up to where she Zhirova was standing and stood beside her. Turning her attention back onto her class, Zhirova continued her lesson as though there was no interruption. "The first initiation you will be faced with will commence at dawn tomorrow morning, I expect you all to be in this room by 0500; failure to be her will result in consequences for the person involved; the consequences will be... unpleasant. The initiation will be a hunting exercise; this means you will be given a head start of one hour and then a hunting squad will be sent after you." She surveyed the class as they took in the information, she noticed several widening of eyes but beyond that, the recruits gave no signs of worry. She smiled evilly at them before adding, "The hunting squad will be led by none other than the Black Widow" that definitely got a reaction; several gasps was audible as well as a 'you have got to be kidding me!' Zhirova glanced over at the young woman next to her and found her face to be impressively blank.

"Right that is all the information you need spread out into partners and begin sparring, using only judo and taekwondo techniques." The recruits obeyed and easily paired up; no squabbling or arguing was done.

"A package with further details will be delivered to your room later today" Zhirova told Natalia, before turning her attention back on the sparring recruits. Natalia knew that was a dismissal but she had something she wanted to ask the instructor and so hesitated before leaving. Zhirova noticed, "You have a question Widow" her voice held a hard edge; the girls knew that questions were frowned upon. Natalia pushed on regardless,

"Yes Ma'am. I was wondering if I may seek retribution on the girl Elisa for failing my lesson the other day" it was not strictly a question, rather a request. Zhirova turned her full attention onto Natalia, her eyes narrowed as she studied the young girl.

"How far would this 'retribution' go Widow?" she asked. The Widow face remained a blank slate "However far you allow me to take it Ma'am" she replied calmly. Zhirova raised an eyebrow at that. "Very well, you may have your retribution. You can do it after lessons in one of the cells down in the basement; I will join you to make sure it does not go too far. I will send her down later. Now. You are dismissed" Zhirova told her.

"Thank you Ma'am" Natalia told her quietly as she bowed and left the room.

The Widow was waiting in the empty cell later that day, fingering the tools she had laid out on the table by the far wall. The stone walls made sure no insulation came through, making the room below freezing temperatures; the Widow did not care. Footsteps were heard several minutes later and the door swung open, emitting Zhirova and Elisa. The Widow bowed to the instructor before turning her attention onto Elisa. With a cold look in her eyes, she dragged the girl over to the middle of the room and cuffed her hands with the chain hanging from the ceiling; she left the girl hanging a few centimetres from the floor. Elisa began to whimper in fear as she began to realise exactly how much trouble she was in; her eyes widened as the Widow approached her, a whip in her hands. Elisa had her top removed before the stinging lash of the whip was felt on her skin.

CRACK! She gritted her teeth.

CRACK! A tear trickled down her cheek

CRACK! She let out a gasp

CRACK!

CRACK! She began to whimper as the pain began to get to more than she could handle

CRACK!

CRACK! Her first scream was heard. The Widow smiled slightly.

CRACK!  
CRACK!

CRACK! On and on it went. Elisa's screams reached new levels as the whip continued to fall. The Widow would have continued her violent 'retribution' if the instructor had not yelled, "STOP!" Reluctantly the Widow obeyed and the whipping ceased. Elisa was still crying/ screaming as she hung limp from the ceiling. Zhirova quickly walked around to take stock of the injuries caused. Even she paled slightly as she eyed the bloody mess which was Elisa's back. The Widow had not held back with her improved strength and the whip had cut in deep. The wounds were gushing blood as Zhirova realised the sobbing girl from her bonds; Elisa fell to the ground and curled into a ball in the puddle of blood already forming. Zhirova stared at the Widow for a moment before running out of the room to call several guards. She appeared several minutes later with four guards behind her. They guards quickly ran over to the bloody girl and picked her up, surprisingly gentle before hurrying back out again; heading towards the medical wing. The Widow and the instructor were left alone in the empty cell. The whip was still in the Widow's hands, blood dripping off the end.

"You're dismissed Widow. I will see you tomorrow morning" the instructor told her quietly, still not believing the ruthlessness she had just witnessed. The Widow bowed, dropped the whip back onto the table and simply walked out of the room; her face devoid of all expression. The instructor watched her retreating back and could not help but wonder that maybe she had taught the lesson of the use of violence too well to the Widow. Shaking her head she too left the room.

The Widow walked into the training room the next morning at 04.30 and found only the instructor and her hunters there. Nods were exchanged by all as she took her place on the right side of Zhirova. The package had been delivered as promised later that afternoon and Natalia had spent several hours going over the exact details of the hunt. They all waited in silence as the recruits began to filter in at 04.50. Just one minute before they could be considered late, Elisa stumbled in. The poor girl was pale and sweating as though even walking to the training room drained whatever energy she had. The Widow remained expressionless as the recruit took her place in the formation.

"Good Morning Recruits" Zhirova started "Today is a very exciting day for you; it is a day where you can show off your skills and to impress me. These men will form the hunting squad being sent after you, led by the Black Widow of course. Follow me please." With that she walked towards the exist with both the hunting squad and recruits following her. The instructor led them outside to where several trucks were waiting. "Get in" she ordered her recruits; they obeyed. The hunting squad took the last truck, Natalia tagged along with them. The journey lasted thirty minutes and the girls were getting nervous by the time the trucks stopped in a large clearing. Snow covered every inch of the ground as well as the trees. All the girls were issued white thermal protection and clothing so they would have a better chance of remaining undetected. "You have one hour head start before the hunters are unleashed. Your time starts NOW!" the instructor told them, and as one the girls ran in different directions through the trees.

The hunters also got changed into white clothing to make it harder for the recruits to spot them. The Black Widow changed from her normal black cat suit to a white shinobi shozoko. The only visible part of her was her green eyes staring out from the slit in her hood. They stood around, gathering up their weapons and making strategies. The Widow being the leader split the hunters into teams of threes and sent them off in various directions. She would be with two other hunters although they were given warning that she may go off on her own; she worked alone. The hour nearly up; they split off into their teams and awaited the order to leave. Zhirova gave them a nod, "Bring them all back" she looked at the Widow, "Alive" they all nodded and took off through the trees. The Widow and her team were cautious as they ran through the woods; they knew that although the recruits were given an hour, not all of them would run as far as they could. Thirty minutes into the hunt and she found her first victim. It was Elisa. The girl was not even bothering to hide; she just sat at the base of a small tree, waiting to be found. The Widow looked at her in disgust and ordered one of her hunters to take her back to the instructor. She and the other hunter continued. An elaborate game of cat and mouse/ hide and seek followed as the hunters began to find more of the girls. The Widow had sent her remaining hunter back to find his partner and had continued alone. This was her element. She found two girls in quick succession and made them wait by a large tree until she returned. It took the hunters a little over five hours to find all the girls.

The Black Widow made her way back to the clearing with three of the recruits trailing her; she had found four of the girls in total including Elisa and the other hunters had the other nine already lined up in front of the instructor as she appeared. She herded the girls into the line before taking her place behind Zhirova. The instructor stared down at the girls with a faint curl of disgust. "You are all pathetic. Five hours and thirteen minutes. That is how long it took the hunters to catch you all through the entire forest." She shook her head before glaring at the shivering girls before her. "Elisa. Vera. Irina. Step forward" she snapped. The three chosen girls stepped forward, a look of fear on their faces. "You three girls were the first to be found. It took the hunters less than an hour to find you all; that is simply not good enough." She turned her head and looked at Natalia. "Widow. Come here" the Widow obeyed and stepped forward herself so she was less than two feet away from the girls. "Do you remember what I told you?" she asked. The Widow nodded and drew her swords from her back. The girls look of fear turned into terror as they realised what was going to happen. One girl ran; trying to escape back into the forest however was stopped by several hunters who dragged her back in front of the Widow. Several others stepped forward and held the other two girls to make sure they stayed put.

"This initiation was your first elimination test." The instructor addressed them all. "These three" she gestured at the girls secured by the hunters "were the first three to be found, therefore they are the ones to die" the other recruits had a look of horror on their faces as they realised what was about to happen. With one final nod directed to her by the instructor, the Black Widow's swords flashed three times and three heads were separated from their bodies and fell to the ground.

Several of the remaining recruits looked like they were going to be sick as they were led back to the trucks. The dead girls were left where they fell as they made their way back to the Red Room. The Widow nodded her head to the instructor before she and her hunters made their way to the armoury, located in the north wing of the facility. They all shed their weapons before going their separate ways. Natalia walked towards the mess hall for some lunch before returning to the training room for her lesson. The Widow continued the day as though nothing happened. She did not care about the lives she took. She didn't let it worry her. The only thing that mattered was her orders and she obeyed them without hesitation.


	8. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

The year was 1948. World War two had ended. Mother Russia was still at her height of power within the Soviet Union. Natalia was standing at attention in the main training room awaiting her Master and new teacher. She had heard rumors throughout the facility about the man with the metal arm. He was the only one besides her who had survived the serum; this she knew to be true. They called him the Winter Soldier. Natalia had been trained not to speculate and so when these rumors had reached her, she set about investigating which were true and which were not. Needless to say her instructors were not aware of her extracurricular activities of spying around the facility. She found out that indeed the man did have a metal arm and had received the serum however she know knew that the man was not a true Russian, rather an American captured during the war. The door banged open and her Master walked in with a tall man behind him. She knelt, head bowed, as he approached her. "Rise Widow" he told her, she obeyed. Her gaze shifted between the two men though her face remained blank.

Ivan turned to the man standing beside him, "Winter Solider, I would like you to meet the Black Widow, our best asset in the Red Room facility"

The Winter Soldier turned his attention onto Natalia; his eyes studying her closely. A faint sneer appeared on his face at what he saw and he spat to Ivan, "She is nothing more than a child, this is the best you can create?" Ivan's face darkened and his eyes flashed angrily as he lashed out at the Soldier and struck him in the face. The Winter Solider went stumbling back under the blow before righting himself and standing to attention. He knew he had spoken out of turn but could not help but feel that the girl before him was not worth his time. He knew he had been woken up specifically to train the Black Widow however he could not believe that the child before him was her. From what he had been told, the Black Widow was utterly ruthless and had a kill list even longer than his own. He was also told that she was absolutely loyal and obedient to her superiors and would obey any orders without question or hesitation.

"You will train the Black Widow Solider. That is an order" Ivan hissed at him before storming out of the room.

The Winter Soldier stared at the back of his superior before turning his attention back onto Natalia. With an inward sigh he instructed her to remain still and circled her. Coming back around, he stopped and looked at her, his face too showing nothing. "You are to obey my orders without hesitation and to the letter. You will not question my motives behind any of my actions. You will give it everything you have or I will make this arrangement deeply unpleasant for you. Do you understand?" he told her, a cold edge in his voice.

"Sir, yes Sir" she replied tonelessly and without hesitation. The Winter Soldier nodded and continued, "I want to see what you can do. We will spar" he dropped into a fight stance; the Widow copied. They began to circle each other, each analyzing one another, waiting for the perfect time to strike. The Soldier struck first, his fist flying at her head with frightening speed. He expected it to land; it always did, however the Widow exploded into action and easily dodged his fist before darting forward and aiming several hard punched at his unprotected stomach. Every one landed and the Solider let out a grunt of pain as several of his ribs cracked. He stepped away from her, trying to gather his wits however she was not letting up and attacked again, this time aiming a high kick at his head. The solider ducked and grabbed her ankle with his metal hand, attempting to get her unbalanced. The Widow was having none of it; she quickly shifted her weight and pushed upwards with her other leg and wrapped her thighs around his neck before twisting sharply and throwing him to the ground. She quickly unraveled herself from the limbs on the floor and threw herself down on top of him and pinned him there; effectively immobilizing him. The Winter Soldier looked up at her, his expression both shocked and impressed. He tapped the floor lightly twice to show surrender and the Widow immediately got of him and stepped away, standing at attention.

The Solider climbed fluidly to his feet and stared at his new student. No one had managed to take him down since he was given the serum. He cocked his head to the side and studied her, "that was very well done Widow, no one has managed to defeat me before" he told her. Her face remained stony and unresponsive. "Tell me, have you received the serum?" he knew her answer before she said it. "Sir, yes Sir" she replied. The Soldier smirked, 'so that's why she is so good' he thought to himself. Granted that she was exceptionally talented at hand to hand combat on her own accord as the serum could only enhance already acquired skills. "How are old are you?" he asked her suddenly. A small frown creased her brow as she considered his question, "I do not know exactly sir" she replied. This time the Soldier frowned, "How can you not know?" he asked curiously. She shrugged her shoulders and responded, "My mind has been wiped and filled too many times for me to know what is real and what is not. At a guess I am around eighteen years old but cannot be sure Sir" concern was evident in his voice as he spoke again, "does this not worry you?" disbelief written over his face at what he heard from her. Her response to this was automatic and cold, "I have no need for feelings sir, and if the Red Room does not require me to know this information then I will not question it. I am nothing more than a tool to be used as my Masters see fit Sir." The soldier suppressed the shiver which was threatening to run down his spine at her response. 'She really believes that' he realizes with a start. Shaking his head slightly he ignored the pity he suddenly felt for the young woman and began to instruct her in various martial arts. He wanted to see exactly what she could do so he would have a better idea of what he needed to focus on.

They went at it for hours; neither of them tiring or breaking a sweat as the day wore on. Ivan came back in from time to time to check on them but never said anything; he just stood watching for several minutes before leaving again. The Winter Solider forced the Widow to her limits in every form of martial arts she knew and then some. She was good; she managed to beat him in almost half their fights and she knew that the Solider was impressed, he just didn't show it. Eight hours later the Solider called a halt to where she was currently sparring against the dozen guards he had pitted against her. Immediately she swiftly took down the last man standing and turned to face him; standing once again at attention. "I will see you tomorrow at 0600 here. Dismissed" he told her. She bowed and left the room without a word. The soldier stared after her retreating figure for a moment before turning around and walking out of the other exist leading to the Eastern wing of the facility.

Natalia went straight to the mess hall and grabbed a bowl of steaming watery stew before sitting down at her normal table, at the back. She ate quietly and efficiently, ignoring the stares she was getting from the younger recruits as they heard the rumors of the Widow and the Solider. Finishing her meal, the Widow got up and left the room and headed back to her quarters. She showered and went to bed.

The Solider made his way from the training room to Ivan's study, intending to get some answers. He knocked twice and waited. A sharp 'enter' was heard from the other side; he opened the door and stood at attention before the desk. Ivan lifted an eyebrow at the Winter Solider, "What can I do for you Soldier?" he asked curiously; this had never happened before. "I would like some information on the Black Widow Sir" he replied, his eyes never leaving the flag which hung behind Ivan. Ivan leaned forward, a smirk on his face, "What would you like to know?" he asked quietly.

"Firstly how old she is Sir" the Solider replied tersely. Ivan raised an eyebrow again, he was not expecting that. "Why do you need to know that Solider?"

"I do not need to know Sir, I was wondering because The Widow informed me that she does not know herself" the Soldier told him, his face calm.

"The Widow is twenty years of age Winter Solider. Does this information bother you? Does it trouble the Widow that she does not know?" an edge appeared in his voice as Ivan answered the Solider, obviously annoyed at this information/ questioning.

"No Sir. It does not bother me or the Widow Sir. She informed me that if she did not know something then it was something she did not need to know" the smirk was back. The Widow truly was well trained.

"Since that is the case, I see no need to continue this conversation. Was there anything else you wanted to know Soldier" the question was merely a formality; his tone suggested that the Soldier should abandon the conversation entirely and leave. The Soldier hesitated slightly; there was so many questions he wanted answers to however he knew it would be unwise to push his luck, "No Sir. Good night Sir" he responded before backing out the room. 'If I cannot get the answers I want from the Masters then I shall have to get them from the source instead' he thought as he made his way to his own quarters.

The next morning, the Widow found herself facing off against the Winter Soldier. Again. She launched herself at him with frightening speed before firing several hard punches across his body. The Winter Solider dodged them all save the last one. He winced as her fist connected with his sternum before retaliating with strikes of his own, forcing her to retreat under the onslaught. It continued as time went by, each either striking or defending themselves; neither was able to finish it- they were too well matched. Finally the Solider swept the feet out from under the Widow and she went down. Before she could roll back to her feet, the Soldier was on her, pinning her to the ground, her hands above her head. The Widow glared at the Soldier before shrugging slightly, "I yield" she told him, immediately he rolled off her and got to his feet. Natalia flipped back to her feet with a grace of a dancer before standing at attention awaiting her next orders.

"If I ask you some questions Widow, will you answer me honestly?" he asked her quietly.  
"I will answer your questions if I can Sir; my answers will be honest unless they conflict with other orders from my Masters." She replied tonelessly, looking straight ahead. The Soldier nodded his head once; it was more than he had hoped.

"How long have you been a part of the Red Room facility?" he asked curiously. The Widow shifted her gaze to him, "I do not know how old I am Sir therefore I cannot give you an accurate answer" she told him carefully, not wanting to seem like she was defecting the question. The Winter Soldier nodded once again, "What if I told you that you are twenty years old at the moment." She thought hard for a moment. "Maybe fourteen years sir, maybe longer" she replied uncertainly; she really did not have a clue about that either. The Soldier hid his shock well; 'she was six years old maybe younger when she started. That explains a lot' he thought. Shaking his head slightly he continued onto another question, "How long have you had the serum for?" that she could answer. "Four years Sir" she replied instantly. How could she forget the most important day of her life? The Masters had seen fit to allow her that memory. The Soldier made no comment, just stared at her for a moment;

"How many recruits have you killed on orders?" he suddenly asked. Her face changed from being expressionless to on guard in a blink of an eye. She wanted to ask why he wanted to know however the lesson of obedience and no questions had been beaten into too well; instead she answered the question,

"Ninety-seven Sir" she spoke quietly. This time the Soldier could not hide his shock- that was already longer than his own and not even her mission count was included. "How many people have you killed altogether?" he asked urgently. Another frown appeared on her face as she tried to recall how many she has actually killed, however thanks to the mind wipes being constantly used on her, she truly had no idea. "All I know is that my tally is over three hundred. The exact number is unknown to me Sir"

His face grew cold and hard as he heard this; she was a child soldier in every sense of the word. "That is all I need to ask Widow. Thank you; you are dismissed" The Widow bowed and left.

"Follow me Widow, I want to see how good your aim is" the Soldier told her as she walked into their normal training room before leading the way to the shooting range. When they got there, the Widow saw a large table covered with a variety of guns and knives. Each was a different weight and size the Widow noticed as she studied them. With a wave of his hand, the Solider gestured for her to pick up a weapon. She let her fingers gently run across them all before stopping at a Ruby. She picked it up and walked towards the firing range. Aiming it with one hand, the Widow fired twelve times; every single bullet hitting the target, specifically in the head. The Widow lowered her weapon as the Winter Solider studied her results; "Next one" he ordered. The Widow obeyed and selected a different weapon; once again she fired and once again the same results came back. They continued this way throughout the day, steadily making their way through all the weapons; as they were finishing the Winter Solider suddenly threw a knife her way, just millimeters from her ear. The Widow reacted instantly; she still hit the target however missed the center of the head before turning the gun towards the threat and firing three times in quick succession. The Soldier, realizing his mistake of not warning her; tried to dodge the bullets but only succeeded in two, the third hitting his shoulder. He let out a curse before shouting "Widow STOP!" the Widow immediately dropped the gun and held her hands up in surrender. Still cursing the Winter Soldier walked over and picked up the gun before speaking again, "I wanted to see how well you would do with a distraction; obviously I was mistaken to not warn you beforehand. Next time I will tell you and next time you will not shoot me; Dismissed" The Widow bowed and left, leaving the Soldier to stare at his shoulder, cursing once again.

Following that fiasco, the Soldier made sure he warned the Widow when he was going to distract her with a potentially lethal weapon; if he wanted to surprise her, he ordered her to ignoring the threat and continue to fire. Incredibly it worked, despite the Widow's astounding reflexes and instincts; she managed to ignore what her body was telling her to do and instead obeyed his orders. The Soldier was deeply impressed by her conditioning to be able to obey orders without a second thought to her own welfare. He made her train with every kind of weapon over and over again until he was satisfied that she had learnt all there was to know about it. Sometimes he would make her train with the same one for weeks before starting something new. A year quickly passed and all the Widow did was train with the Soldier. Fifteen hours a day, seven days a week. Under him she flourished; every weakness, no matter how small was ironed out of her. His methods were ruthless to a point that could threaten her life even with the serum and would have killed her long ago if she did not process it. The Widow just learned from it and she learnt it well, violence and brutality was all she had ever known, it was what she thought was normal and so never questioned the methods.

Two more years went by; her lessons with the Soldier became less frequent as she was sent to her other lessons again and on missions. The missions never lasted more than three days during the period with the Winter Soldier as the Masters wanted her to gain everything possible from him before he was put back to sleep. He sometimes accompanied her on her missions, mostly for back up although once or twice he added to the validity of the mission by pretending to be her 'father' or 'lover'. These words held little meaning to her personally and so she just regarded them as roles and alias's to help complete her objective.

During the three years, the Winter Solider found himself beginning to care for the Widow; he had not been subjected to the Protocol and so was not limited by ability to express emotions. He was annoyed with himself as the worry he felt for his student began to grow into concern whenever she was sent on a mission without him. His care for the Widow soon blossomed into love. He could not help it, he knew love was for children and yet his mind refused to believe it anymore. Ivan noticed the slight change of behavior in the Solider and was worried that the mind wipe was malfunctioning early; he did not realize exactly what was causing the change. The Winter Solider was sent off to the Medical Wing and his mind wipe was analyzed and found intact; this reassured and worried Ivan but nevertheless he allowed the Soldier to continue his duty as a teacher.

It all came to a head one night on a mission. The Soldier was playing the role of the Widow's lover. He found that he did not have to pretend to be deeply in love with her but rather had to pretend it was not real. But of course the Widow noticed. She noticed everything. "What do you think you're doing?" she hissed in his ear. The Soldier knew he had been found out and rather than trying to deny it he professed his love for her. It was a mistake and a blessing rolled into one. "I think I have developed feelings for you Natalia, feelings that are not mine to control" he replied calmly, looking deep into her eyes. Natalia saw the wanting and longing in his own eyes and began to shake. "I love you Natalia; I want to be with you and only you" Natalia eyes widened, "Love is for Children" she hissed angrily at him before fleeing the room. She ran quickly to the extraction point and got taken back to the Red Room early by initiating Emergency Code Alpha One.

Back in the room the Soldier realized his grave mistake by admitting his feelings; he had forgotten that Natalia no longer had access to her feeling thanks to the protocol and would no doubt be on her way to inform the Masters of his weakness. He just sat there and waited to be collected.

As soon as she got to the facility Natalia ran to Ivan's study. She knocked quickly and swung the door open instantly as soon as she was permitted to enter. Ivan was there, sitting in at his desk as usual with a frown on his face as he saw who it was. "Widow you are meant to be completing your mission, why are you here?" his tone dangerous and angry. Natalia dropped to one knee before his desk, head bowed. "Forgive me Master but I had to initiate

Emergency Code Alpha One. The Winter Soldier has been compromised" Ivan leapt up from his seat, "WHAT?" he roared as stalked over to where she knelt and grabbed her by her throat, lifting her up in the air. She did not struggle against him rather told him what he wanted to know, "he has developed feelings for me that far extend the normal master-student bond Master. He told me he loved me"

With a cry of rage, Ivan threw her across the room into the wall- she fell to the ground with a THUD- and began to pace furiously up and down, trying to make sense of things. Suddenly he turned to her,

"How did you respond?" he demanded. The Widow still on the floor, turned her head to face him, "I told him Love is for children"

Ivan nodded once and began to calm down, "Where is he?" he asked her, visually calmer than he was less than a minute ago.

"When I left he was still in out motel room Master" Natalia responded instantly.

"Good, get out, you're dismissed." Her Master told her with a wave of his hand as his attention turned back to the Winter Soldier. She bowed her head and left the room.

She made her way back to her room and not matter how hard she tried to forget the Soldier's words they kept replaying themselves in her head like a broken record, "I love you. I love you. I love you" she could not shut it out. The words themselves meant nothing to her other than an irritating buzzing that would not go away. When she got to her room she let out a frustrated growl and punched her wall; needless to say, a hole appeared when she removed her fist. Bloody poured from her mangled hand but she did not care; she went and stood in the shower and just stood there motionless as freezing cold water sprayed her. She had never lost control like that and she realized with a start that she felt angry. The feeling was so foreign to her now that she did not understand how to deal with it; she punched the wall again before breathing deeply for several minutes. The first cracks in the barrier in her mind were beginning to show.


	9. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

Sleep was not kind to her that night; nightmares plagued her subconscious mind, memories long since forgotten awoke; The Fire. Eva. The night she took the lives of twenty children at a nursery. They flashed one after the other before her eyes, getting faster and faster until they were just a blur. Natalia tossed and turned, screaming in her sleep as everything the protocol had suppressed came back with a vengeance. The guards alerted by her screams, rushed into the room. When they saw her thrashing around on her bed they ran over to try and subdue/wake her while another called Ivan. Natalia still trapped under, fought with her instincts against those who tried to hold her down. Ivan appeared as one guard was thrown across the room, Natalia screaming reached a new pitch as the barrier in her mind broke the second time. Every memory, emotion and injury that had been suppressed poured into her mind like a tidal wave.

"Get her to Medical. Now!" snapped Ivan at the guards as he ran out the room to get Doctor Yolkov. The guards roughly cuffed her hands before carrying the still screaming, semi-conscious woman out of the room towards the Medical Wing.

The same team of doctors that had treated her years previously were already there, preparing for her arrival. The guards gently laid her on the table and the restraints were placed on her again before the cuffs were removed. Natalia thrashed in pain as her brain experienced all the pain and emotions that her body had suffered during the protocol implant. Doctor Yolkov rushed in with Ivan on his tail; he ran straight over to Natalia and began to check her vitals while the other doctors called out statistics at him of her condition. IV drips were placed in her arms as Yolkov gave her a large sedative. The sedative was constantly pumped into her system as her body metabolism burned it off faster than the average body. Natalia calmed down as the sedative pulled her under; her heart rate too slowed down back to a normal level. Yolkov and the rest of the doctors let out a sigh of relief before turning their attention on the monitors which were showing Natalia's vitals and blood pressure. "What happened Doctor?" Ivan growled at Yolkov. Yolkov looked at Ivan nervously and answered, "It um it appears that the protocol has been dismantled for the second time General" the man edged backwards as Ivan stalked towards him, his face displaying exactly how furious he was.

"How did this happen Doctor? You promised me that it would hold against all but the most severe pain that her body could handle" he spat. Ivan stopped several inches away from the cowering man in the lab coat. The other doctors were studiously ignoring the showdown and were focusing on Natalia.

"I do not know!" squealed the man pathetically, "She must have experienced something life shattering during the last twenty four hours; what was she doing?" Still glaring at the man, Ivan let his mind drift back over the last day to try and determine exactly what may have caused this; he let out a gasp as he came to the last conversation he had with the Widow.

"That bastard!" he suddenly spat out loud with such venom in his voice that all in the room visually flinched.

"Tell me Doctor, would a sudden confrontation by an emotion be enough to shatter the barrier?" he asked Yolkov. Yolkov frowned slightly, "If the emotion was a big enough shock to the subject then yes it could serve as the trigger, especially if the subject is unused to that particular emotion."

Ivan growled in anger again and promised himself that the Winter Solider would regret the day he was born. He began pacing as he thought about exactly where this left the Red Room and the Black Widow. Turning to Yolkov he asked,

"What happens to her now?"

Doctor Yolkov sighed deeply as he watched the chest of the young woman before him rise and fall. Tearing his gaze from Natalia, he refocused on Ivan,

"The next several months at least will be extremely hard on her mind; everything we have supressed for the last nine years is now coming back all at once, I'm not sure she will be able to survive it unscathed. The mind wipes will still work as will the implanting of memories however I would not recommend doing that for at least a year."

Ivan remained quiet for such a long time that the Doctors were getting seriously nervous. He suddenly spoke,

"Thank you Doctor for that explanation however what I truly meant was what will her reactions be to the Red Room as a whole"

The Doctor took his glasses off and polished them briefly on his lab coat, thinking hard.

"At a guess, the Black Widow will revert back to the way she was before the protocol at least mentally wise. This means that she will still be fairly obedient and loyal to the Red Room and to Mother Russia; you just won't get the unwavering assassin you have become accustomed to. She will once again be able to feel pain and emotions although you can always beat that out of her again- the emotions anyway." He paused and looked Ivan straight in the eye, "Just remember that no matter how much torture you use, you will never get the protocol Widow back" he finished with a warning edge in his voice.

Ivan understood what the Doctor was saying; The Widow would have to be retrained/reprogrammed back into the same person she had become before the protocol was implemented however there was only so much pain she would now be able to take to achieve that. Fortunately he had an excellent selection of Instructors who would be happy to take on the task but he did not delude himself into thinking it was going to be easy or quickly fixed, if what the Doctor said was true then Natalia will be severally confused for the next few months. All this went through his mind while he stared straight back at the Yolkov; he nodded his head once and without another word left the room to begin planning the new time table Natalia would be given. He would deal with the Winter Soldier later.

Back in the room, Yolkov had decided that they would leave Natalia sedated for the next twenty four hours as to give her mind a chance to attempt to make some sense of what has suddenly been bombarded onto her. They undid the restraints and moved her into a cubicle further in the medical wing to keep an eye on her. The doctors were all relieved that none of them would apparently lose their life over this unforeseen unfortunate event. The protocol should have lasted for another five decades at the very least before breaking down; the fact that Natalia had managed to break down two barriers within less than one decade was remarkable to say the least.

Natalia was floating. Opening her eyes she realised that she was actually inside her own mind. Surrounding her was windows; many windows, all floating around with her. In each window she saw a freeze frame of a memory; they were all different. Curious, she lifted one hand and touched the closest one to her. The window rippled like water before clearing once again only this time the full memory was being played: Eva was there and so was she. The Natalia in her memory opened her mouth and murmured two words at Eva before suddenly sliding her knife between the younger girls ribs; puncturing a lung. Natalia screamed as she saw the girl take her last breath; the memory stopped and the window went black. Another window floated by and touched her hand, before she could stop it, this memory began to play. It was her in a room full of children. Natalia watched as herself in the memory began to break their necks one by one without a hint of remorse on her face. This one had barely finished before another started. Again and again they played around her and Natalia was powerless to stop them as she watched herself take life after life. Suffer pain after pain.

Suddenly a large memory window floated down to her. In the freeze frame she recognised herself. She was shocked. It wasn't a memory that the protocol had repressed but one she had forgotten. She was young, around twelve years old. That was not the most surprising thing though, what was surprising was that she was smiling. Her hand shaking, Natalia reached forwards and touched it. The window shimmered like the others and the memory began. The little Natalia was in the forest, tracking a group of men a few meters in front of her. As the older Natalia watched; the man leading the party suddenly stopped and spun round, his eyes instantly focusing on where she hid. Natalia watched in sudden recognition as she recognised the man, Captain America. She remembered this mission; she was in Germany, her main objective was to watch the Howling Commandos (save Bucky) and report back to Ivan on their movements. However it had not gone to plan. She played back the scenes that followed just as she watched them happening in front of her. The Captain had heard her and had chased her when she ran. He caught up with her easily before dragging her back to his Commandos. They had all been shocked that the 'spy' had been a child and had tried to get her to co-operate. Emphasis on tried. They had taken her with them as they continued their journey unaware of who she really was. The little Natalia had told them nothing; she knew that other Red Room operatives were tracking her down. The men regardless of her silence treated her with respect and kindness especially the Captain; it was the first time since she could remember that she was not being beaten and actually treated like a human being if not a child. She was almost sad when it ended. Almost. Five days after they took her; the group was ambushed by Hydra agents and she escaped/ran from the Americans. She met up with several other Red Room operatives a day later and had explained what had happened; she was then sent back to the facility and later to Ivan. The memory stopped there. Natalia stayed where she was; disbelief still on her face.

Every emotion that had accompanied each memory had also made itself known to her and her head felt like it was going to explode. Too many tried to make themselves known at once and they were consuming her. Suddenly she heard a voice call her name.

"Widow!" it sounded far away from where she floated. Alone. She closed her eyes; 'maybe if I ignore it, it will go away' she thought. The voice came again louder than before. She moaned quietly, 'can't they leave her in peace?' "WIDOW!" her eyes snapped open.

She looked around and found she was no longer surrounded by her memory windows, instead she found herself in a small bed surrounded by white walls and wary eyed doctors. She blinked up at them but did not say a word. The door opened and Doctor Yolkov walked in. He stopped when he reached the foot of her bed and stared down at her, his gaze filled with curiosity as though she was an extremely interesting experiment.

"How are feeling Widow?" he asked her gently, still staring at her. Despite the overwhelming confusion in her head, Natalia morphed her features into a blank slate before replying,

"Like my head is going to explode Sir" her voice was quiet yet she refused to show any weakness in front of witnesses even if all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry. Although her head was seriously messed up she still knew how to react to a superior officer and she was not about to let go off two dozen years of conditioning, no matter how much she may want to. 'Wanting' she thought 'that's new'. The Doctor chuckled quietly,

"Yes it probably does. You see Widow, the protocol that we implanted nine years ago in your mind, broke down yesterday night and so now everything that was suppressed is now coming rushing back to you all at once." He paused, waiting for a reaction. The Widow kept her face neutral; her only response to the news was a slight nod.

"Your mind is going to be... confused for the next few months; however if it ever gets too much, please inform one of the doctors and we will help you." He continued with a slight smile on his face. Once again Natalia nodded and replied,

"Thank you Sir. What are my orders for the time being?" Yolkov replied,

"Your orders for the next two days are to remain in this bed. After that, I believe a new timetable will be issued for you to follow." Natalia nodded her head once more, but did not say a word. Yolkov clearly got the message and him and the other doctors filed out the room, leaving Natalia alone with her memories.

Two days later...

Natalia was standing at attention before Ivan and six instructors in one of the training rooms. She had received her new timetable late last night and did not really like the look of her new lifestyle. The lessons were almost the same as before the protocol. She had languages, geography, history, math and of course combat and weaponry however there was a new lesson. The block where it showed her new lesson remained blank; she had no idea of what she would be taught but had a feeling that it would not be anything pleasant.

"Widow. I would like to introduce you to your new instructors. These instructors have kindly volunteered to help you get back to the best you once were. I trust that you will treat them with the same respect that you give me?" his voice hard and cold. She stiffened slightly at the underlying threat, "Yes Master. Each and every instructor will be treated with the uttermost respect and I will obey their commands without question" her reply was given almost mechanically. No trace of any emotion was heard. Ivan nodded his head once, "good, then I will leave you in the hands of our capable instructors" with that he walked out of the room. Natalia quickly bowed as he left; still respectful even if Ivan ignored her. Once Ivan left the room she straightened up and once again stood to attention. Her instructors studied her silently for several minutes before once spoke. "How is your head Widow?" he asked her, his voice held no mocking tone or smirk. "My mind is still confused Sir however it will not stop me from performing at my best Sir" Natalia replied calmly, still looking straight ahead. The other instructors smiled slightly at her response. "Well that is very good to hear Widow, now we shall begin with your first lesson. Our names are not important; you may call us 'Sir' or 'Ma'am', nothing else. Am I clear?" the same instructor told her. Her reply was delivered with no hesitation. "Sir, yes, sir"

The instructor nodded while the rest of the instructors spread out into a loose circle on the mats. "Step into the middle Widow" he instructed; she obeyed. She turned slowly, eyeing the instructors who surrounded her. Without warning, one attacked her from behind; The Widow dodged the punch aimed at her head while simultaneously kicking her attacker in the knee, he collapsed with a grunt. The instructor climbed back on his feet and all the instructors began to circle her; she stood still, relying on her instincts. Three instructors attacked her at once; she exploded into action. The Widow kicked one instructor in the stomach before launching herself onto another, wrapping her thighs around the attacker's neck before twisting her body slightly making him off balance and throwing him to the floor. The Widow gracefully rolled out from under him and back onto her feet in one movement. The final attacker grabbed her from behind and held her tightly; she quickly grabbed one of her attacker's wrists and twisted sharply, a SNAP was audible along with a sharp gasp of pain from the unfortunate instructor. The attacker released her, the Widow however did not, she tightened her grip before lifting him over her shoulder and throwing him onto the other two attackers' still on the floor. The remaining two instructors waited until their comrades were back on their feet before they attacked. The one with the broken wrist sat out while the other five began to throw a mixture of punches and kicks at the Widow. The Widow managed to defend herself from the first eight or nine blows before one got past her defences and landed on her stomach; it did not slow her down. She moved like a whirl wind, landing punches of her own while her body absorbed some strikes of their own. Eventually a stunning blow to the side of her head made her stumble and the instructors pressed home their advantage. One swept her feet out from under her and she went down with a soft 'thump', the others rained blow after blow down on her. She curled into a ball in an attempt to protect her most vulnerable parts; namely her head however the instructors were having none of it. This was the first part of her new 'lesson'. Ivan had instructed the instructors that she needed to be reprogrammed in their way of thinking; the fastest way to that was through violence as it was all she had known.

Two instructors stopped their blows to grab hold of her hands and feet; they spread her out so now her body was unprotected. The others continued the beating. They took special care though to avoid her head; that was the only thing they were not allowed to touch. Several CRACKS were heard as three of her ribs broke. The beating continued. Several hours later the blows stopped; the Widow was breathing heavily but showed no sign of the pain coursing through her entire body. The instructors let her go and they all stepped back to watch the broken woman in front of them. With a grunt the Widow gingerly got to her feet, ignoring the protest from her bones and muscles; already she could feel the serum doing its job and healing her broken bones. Still breathing heavily she stood at attention and waited for her instructors to say something. "You lied to us Widow; you did not perform at your best. You held back Widow" a female instructor told her coldly, "if you wanted to take us all down, we would be the ones with injuries not you" inwardly the Widow flinched. It was true. She had not at first, however after she had broken the wrist of one she did not want to inflict any other major injuries on her instructors, knowing that they would not take kindly to them and so she had pulled back her punches.

"It appears that the lessons need to be clearer for you to understand" another instructor said. Two stepped forward and dragged her away, down to the basement.

Screams could be heard through closed doors as she was dragged down the corridor; one voice particularly got her attention. The voice was deeper than the others. The Widow stopped outside the room and glanced at one of the instructors holding her. He smirked,

"Don't worry Widow; the Winter Soldier is getting what he deserved." For the first time that she could remember, the Widow found herself feeling pity towards someone else. She tried to open the door but was pulled back. "Let me in!" she shouted at the men holding her as she once again tried to open the door. A stunning blow across her face stopped her attempts. The two instructors continued to drag her up the corridors before throwing her into an empty cell. All the instructors followed her in. "You are severely in need of another lesson Widow" one told her coldly as her arms were yanked roughly behind her back and attached to the chains handing from the ceiling. The length of the chain was adjusted so that only the tip of her toes touched the floor. Both shoulders cracked as they dislocated. Two instructors held cattle prods, three held whips while the other left the room to apparently 'get a surprise'. "Let class commence" one said with a smirk. The cattle prods were up first. Both were set to her skin at the same time and so double to voltage got sent through her. It went on for several hours; her body racked with spasms while sweat drenched her entire body. Small burns covered almost every inch of skin and the Widow refused to show any kind of weakness. The prodding stopped and the whipping started. They whips had nine different lashes and so every time one hit her, she was being whipped equivalent to nine times. All three instructors struck her; two on her back, one on her stomach. Her breathing became harsher and rapid as she began to have difficulty breathing. Three more hours went by and her body was now covered in blood and sweat; burns and cuts. The instructors stopped and looked at her, "do you want it to stop Widow?" one asked her. Natalia looked back at her with tired eyes; she nodded, still breathing hard. The same instructor smiled cruelly, "Tough, your surprise is yet to come" the door banged open as though to emphasise her point and the previous instructor came back in with a branding iron; the end glowed white. Natalia eyes widened in horror as she realised what was about to happen. It had been years since she had been punished this way. She shook her head as the instructor approached her with the iron. "No" she whispered; the only response she got was cold, unflinching eyes from everyone in the room "please no" she continued to beg as the iron got closer. Her begging fell on deaf ears. The branding iron was placed gently on her shoulder before the one welding it shoved it hard into her. She screamed as the hot metal burned her skin; the smell of the burning skin made her feel nauseous but still the punishment continued. After five minutes the iron was removed and place on another body part; her screams reached a higher pitch. The instructors watched mercilessly as Natalia thrashed as much as she could. Two hours later the branding iron was removed for the last time and Natalia was left still dangling from the ceiling, sobbing quietly, her entire body covered with burns. The instructors left her in the cell alone for the remainder of the night.

The next morning they returned; the serum had done almost completed its job; the cuts and most of the burns were gone. "Good morning Widow" they taunted her, "class is now resumed. Let's see if you learnt anything from yesterday" and so it began again. Electrocuted. Whipped. Burnt.

That night she was fed cold stew and a bottle of water before once again being left alone; still dangling from the ceiling. This cycle continued for two weeks; her pain tolerance quickly grew again and she no longer made a single noise or allowed a single emotion to pass her face during the torture. They released her after fifteen days and she went to the medical wing to get her shoulders dislocated again as they had healed in the wrong position.

The next year was brutal for her. On top of her normal lessons; she still excelled at whatever she was being taught; the blank block on her timetable was filled with endless torture methods directed at her. She began to slowly cut off emotions completely within her on her own accord. Her memories were still confusing at times but they now had a place in her head. She remembered everything she had ever done for the Red Room and Mother Russia; all the missions, all the lessons and all the deaths she had caused. At first she had felt remorse and guilty for the countless deaths however they were quickly cut off; they were so foreign and were too much for her to bear.

After the first year she was back to the same person she was nine years ago. Cold, remorseless, emotionless and above all obedient. The instructors and masters found that the emotions problem had been dealt with and was no longer a concern; they were pleased. The fact still remained that they hurt her a great deal, daily. A deep fear was the only thing Natalia could feel; a fear of her Masters.

They began to send her back on missions half way through the second year. It was a simple mission; kill a Russian politician who had been selling Russia's secrets to America. She completed it with ease and returned to the Facility less than a day later. After that mission she was sent on harder more difficult ones. The mind wipes were still used although with less frequency; the false memories were given to her before every long term undercover mission. For the next five years everything went smoothly for Natalia. She did everything the Red Room asked of her and never failed a single mission. Her kill count she found out was now over eight hundred. She was now thirty years old and yet still only looked eighteen. The year was 1958 and this was the year where everything went down hill.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Rape scene involved

Chapter Ten

She watched as the group of recruits before her lined up behind the table in front of them. On the table there were twelve automatic machine guns, one lying in front of each of them. Their lesson today was to disassemble and reassemble the guns within thirty seconds. The recruits looked at the Black Widow's cold face nervously as she explained exactly what they had to do. Natalia took one of the guns into her own hands and spoke,

"Watch closely recruits" she said as she began to disassemble the gun slowly before reassembling it at the same pace. Her aim was to make sure they all knew exactly how each piece fit together. She did it again faster. After disassembling and reassembling the gun four times with a varying degree of speed, she placed the gun back on the table. Eyeing them up, she instructed them to dissemble their own. The recruits hastened to obey and the room was filled with the sound of metal as the guns were taken a part with little grace or speed. The room fell silent several minutes later as each girl finished. Natalia raised a delicate eyebrow.

"Three minutes and forty three seconds" she said, her tone hinting at her displeasure. The recruits suddenly developed an interest in the floor.

"By the end of the lesson I expect you all to have mastered disassembling and reassembling these guns within half a minute; failure to do so will result in unpleasant consequences." Natalia informed them coldly. She watched as the recruits faces paled; they all knew that the Black Widow was ruthless in everything she did, especially punishing those who displeased her.

"Now begin!" Natalia commanded. As one the recruits began to reassemble their guns. Once again the air was filled with the sound of metal scrapping metal. Three minutes and twenty seconds later…

Natalia looked at her recruits in disgust. They were taking too long, it did not matter that it was their first time; she herself had managed to disassemble and reassemble her first gun within a minute.

"Three minutes and twenty seconds" her voice rang out with a hard edge,

"That was atrocious." she stood glaring at them for several minutes; the recruits blanching under her gaze. "Again" she commanded. And so it went on for the next hour; the recruits were given no rest nor respite as their fingers became red and raw from the friction of the metal. The only word that was spoken 'again' as Natalia continued the lesson; her face showing none of the displeasure she was feeling. The recruits were still only managing to complete the objective with less than satisfactory results; indeed the fastest time was only ninety one seconds with the slowest at two minutes and fifteen seconds. Figuring that maybe her recruits needed some 'encouragement' she swiftly picked up her own automatic machine gun and fired it just above the recruit's heads. Several recruits cried out as they threw themselves onto the floor on instinct. Natalia shook her head in disgust as she observed them,

"GET UP" she roared at them; they hastened to obey, all standing at attention.

"The next time I shall not miss" Natalia told them quietly yet coldly; several girls began to shake.

"Again" Natalia commanded them calmly. They did just that. However it seemed that luck was not with the recruits that day as several girls dropped several pieces of their gun onto the floor while another in her haste to complete her own, wacked the recruit next to her around the head with it; the girl dropped to the ground semi conscious with a moan.

"ENOUGH" she shouted, finally losing her temper. Inwardly she winced as she realised she had lost control. Taking a deep breath she reined her anger back inside and morphed her features into a blank slate. Natalia disappeared and the Black Widow surfaced. The only sound in the room was harsh breathing from the scared recruits and the occasional moan from the wounded girl still on the floor. The Widow strode round the table and yanked the girl back onto her feet before shoving her into the table. She bent down and grabbed the girl's chin roughly and turned it to the side to check the damage; a two inch gash was present, blood gushing from the wound.

"Get to medical" she ordered, releasing the girl and giving her a light push towards the entrance. The girl stumbled away, eager to get out of the room. She turned to the other girls, all whom were in varying stages of fright; several were shaking with fear, a couple were letting out small sobs of terror and all were breathing heavily.

"You are all pathetic" she told them, her voice devoid of all expression, "What are you?" she asked.

"Pathetic" came the mumbled response from several recruits  
"What was that?" her voice dangerously low

"PATHETIC" chanted the girls back at the Widow, their voices betraying their fear. The Widow stood glaring at them before uttering the command,

"Again"

They all had finished within the ninety second mark this time round. The Widow betrayed nothing as she watched them begin again. They were learning. Suddenly a voice from the door called out,

"How goes the lesson Widow?" The Widow spun round to see her Master, Ivan, walking towards her. She bowed deeply as he approached her, "Master" she acknowledged him, her voice hinting at the respect and fear she felt for him. The recruits also bowed as soon as they realised who it was. Ivan ignored the recruits and waited until the Widow straightened back up again.

"The lesson goes badly Master" the Widow informed him, inwardly wincing. She hated to report anything bad to him. Ivan lifted an eyebrow in an unasked question; she expanded,

"My recruits are pathetic Master, they cannot dissemble and reassemble their weapons within even one minute despite doing the same repetitive movements for the last hour" her voice was cold and hard. Ivan looked at his student briefly,

"Truly?" he asked her.

"Yes Master"

Ivan turned his gaze onto the sorry looking recruits; he looked at them with disgust which only deepened when one sobbed out loud. Turning back to the Widow,

"You will discipline them I presume?"

"Yes Master" she hesitated slightly before answering unfortunately Ivan caught it.

"You have something to say Widow?" he asked, his voice dangerous

"No Master" came the hurried response; Ivan knew there was something.

"Answer me truthfully Widow!" he commanded. She obeyed,

"Yes Master, I would ask your permission to terminate these recruits instead of merely disciplining them." Ivan looked at her harshly, silently pleased at her causal disregard for human life. He looked once more at the huddling recruits before turning back to his student,

"Permission granted Widow" and with that he turned and left the room. The Widow bowed as he left before turning and walking back to the table and her recruits. Without another word to them she picked up her gun and shot every single recruit once in the head. Guards came running into the room and took stock of the scene; they glanced at her nervously as she placed the gun back onto the table and walked out the room without another glance back at the bloodbath she had just created.

Several weeks passed and she was yet to get another group of recruits to train. Her own timetable took up much of her time during the daytime but her evenings were still free of anything to do except more training. She was now fluent in over thirty six languages, an expert in all kinds of weaponry and a black belt in over two dozen martial arts. The torture sessions still occurred weekly. However, she had built up such a high tolerance for pain that it was almost impossible for the instructors to make her scream anymore. This pleased them very much both because it showed how successful their best creation had become and also because it gave them entertainment as they attempted to make her do so. They were the sickest and most sadistic instructors employed by the Red Room and they loved to make not only her but all the recruits scream and beg. The Widow had been sent on several kill missions over the weeks, all completed successfully and the Masters were very pleased with her. She was currently getting ready for her next mission when one of the instructors walked into her quarters. She turned to face him and bowed before standing at attention.

"Good evening Widow" he said, politely

"Good evening Sir" she replied

"Your mission parameters have been changed Widow." He informed her, getting straight to the point, "Three recruits will be tagging along with you to get a feel for the missions. They will be shadowing your every move to find out how it is done." He continued, gazing thoughtfully at her. Natalia stared back her face carefully set like stone.

"If they become too obvious tell me when you return; they have to watch the execution Widow. No exceptions" he finished coldly. She nodded her head once in acknowledgment,

"Sir Yes Sir" she replied. Satisfied, the instructor walked back out of the room while Natalia fixed her Black Widow insignia belt around her waist. She was running; chasing her target through the winding streets of Moscow. The Widow was aware of the three sets of feet pounding behind her, getting steadily further away from her as she continued the hunt. Her target had already been warned of her coming when she had arrived to finish her mission; how, she did not know, it did not matter, she was still going to complete her mission regardless of the consequences to her life. The Widow was gaining ground fast thanks to the serum and the target looked around his shoulder, a picture of terror on his face as he spotted how close she was. Unfortunately thanks to him not paying attention, he missed the crate lying in the middle of the street and tripped over it, sprawling on the snowy ground. The Widow stopped; a cold smile appeared on her face as she approached him slowly as he attempted to crawl away. Bending down, she grabbed hold of his ankle and squeezed, a loud SNAP signalled the bone breaking and he screamed out in pain; she smirked before dragging him down a nearby ally. She heard running footsteps behind her and spun round, her guns already trained on the entrance. The recruits skidded to a stop as they came face to face with the barrels of the Widow's guns; as one they raised their hands, signifying surrender. The Widow held her guns on them for another moment before turning back to her target; she placed the guns back into the holsters on her waist and bent down and dragged him onto his knees. Her face a mask she walked around so that she was standing behind him and looked at the recruits, all whom were trying to keep their faces blank as they realised what came next. The target began to beg for his life as he felt the Widow's arm secure around his neck, "Watch" she ordered, the Widow waited one more moment to make sure her recruits were indeed watching before swiftly breaking the target's neck with a sickening CRACK. She released him and watched as his dead body sunk to the ground never to rise again. The recruit's faces were white and their eyes widened in horror; they had never witnessed a death before and it was a shock to see someone take another's life so easily and callously. "Come" the Widow told them, leading the way out of the ally way. The recruits followed obediently but kept looking over their shoulders and seeing the dead man's glassy eyes staring back at them. One shivered, one just looked away and the last one turned green. The Widow never glanced back, not even for a moment as she walked away from her latest kill.

They were waiting for her at the extraction point as she made her way towards it with the three recruits trailing after her. The mission although successful was too overt for the Red Room's liking. Ivan was there, flanked by two guards as he watched his student walk towards him, towards the helicopter which would take them all home. He cold, unflinching eyes rested on the Widow as she stopped less than a meter away from him and dropped to one knee, her head bowed. The recruits stopped walking and just stood there frozen in terror as they caught sight of one of the Masters. "Look at me Widow" he commanded the kneeling figure in front of him, his voice cold as ice. Internally the Widow winced at his tone but she obeyed the order nevertheless and lifted her head to look at her Master. "What is the meaning of this? Your mission was to infiltrate his home and then kill him… discreetly" his eyes narrowed on the last word. Keeping her face blank she replied, "Forgive me Master, he was forewarned of my arrival and had already made a run for it; I tracked him down and completed the mission" Ivan's face became a mask of fury at her words and he struck out, backhanding her hard across the face. Her face snapped to the side from the force of the blow as blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. He was not actually angry at her, she had after all completed the kill, no what he was furious about was that someone had betrayed him. He took a deep breath to calm himself; he would deal with it later and looked down again at still kneeling figure. "Where is the body?" "The ally way off Oktyabrskaya Road Master, his neck is broken" she replied quietly. He nodded his head once and gestured for the one of the guards to step forward; he quickly relayed instructions to the guard before turning his attention onto the recruits, all whom were still standing there in shock. He beckoned for them to come closer; they obeyed hesitantly and walked forwards until they were standing next to the kneeling Widow. Ivan studied their faces closely and appeared satisfied with what he saw. "We will talk more when we get back to the Facility Widow. Rise." The Widow gracefully got to her feet and fell into step behind her Master, flanking his right side where the guard previously was and followed him to the helicopter. The recruits hurried after them, eager to get back home.

The Red Room Facility…

Once again the Widow found herself kneeling in front of the Masters as she gave her report of the mission. Her face and tone devoid of all emotions as she relayed the details of her compromised mission. The Masters listened intently to what she was saying, their faces betraying none of the worry and anger that they felt as they found out that they had a mole inside the Red Room. One held up a hand, "Did you not attempt to question the target to find out who had betrayed us?" he asked. The Widow bowed her head in shame, she had not. "Forgive me Master, I did not" Master Gregovitch snorted, "Why did you not Widow?" he asked "I did not think to Master, I was too focused on completing my mission" came the quiet response. The Masters all glared at the kneeling woman in front of them; if she had done so, much time would now not have to be wasted on a man-hunt. "Finish your report" another finally ordered after silence fell for several long minutes. She complied and finished retelling exactly what happened, including the recruit's responses. They did not look very pleased at that particular piece of information however they all nodded in satisfaction once she was done, silently informing her that she had done well overall. She was apparently not going to be punished for being so thoughtless; for that she was thankful. That was, until Arkady spoke up; he had always had a fondness for cruelty and pain and so took every opportunity he had to dish it out personally. "I wish for the Widow to be punished for her thoughtlessness during the mission. Will anyone deny me this?" he asked of his fellow Masters. All shook their heads, including Ivan. Arkady smirked and snapped his fingers, two guards jumped forward, he addressed them, "Take her to my quarters and make sure the usual instruments are there; I will be there shortly" the guards nodded and dragged her to her feet before frog marching her out of the room. He looked round the room and waited until the door closed behind the leaving party before speaking, "Before I leave, I think it is prudent to discuss how this could have happened." The other Masters nodded their heads in agreement. Gregovitch spoke, "I fear the mole has to have been one of the instructors. They are the only ones who had access to the mission's details besides us and the Widow. I am willing to state that it was not any of us nor was it the Widow" the Masters nodded their heads again in agreement. Ivan spoke, "With the councils permission I would like to head the investigation" his voice hard and cold. A chorus of 'yeses' greeted these words and Ivan bowed his head slightly in acknowledgment, "I will keep you all updated with how well the search goes, until then…" he stood up, "We will leave the meeting there" and with that he left the room, closely followed by a rather eager Arkady.

She was standing in the middle of a large bedroom, waiting for the Master to come. She had been ordered by the guards to stay there until permitted to do otherwise and of course she had obeyed without hesitation. She knew Arkady and his 'punishments' well, having been submitted to endure him multiply times in the past. His punishments although not as painful as several others she had suffered through, were by far the most humiliating. A sound outside the door turned her attention that direction; the door opened and Arkady strode in with a huge, cold smile on his face. "Welcome back Widow, are you not excited about our evening together?" he asked her as walked up to her, stopping less that a foot from her. "Of course Master" she replied, "Where would you have me?" she continued, she knew the drill by now. Arkady thrived on being the one in control in these situations and so she made it easier on herself by submitting herself to him. He smirked, "Now now, we will get to that. First take off your clothes." She obeyed and took her catsuit off first, leaving her in nothing but her underwear. "Them too" he told her, she complied and soon was standing naked before him. He circled her slowly letting his hands wander over her body as he did so. "Beautiful, so beautiful" he muttered under his breath as his eyes took on a possessive gleam. "On the bed" he commanded. She moved and did as she was told. He roughly pulled her arms above her head and chained her wrists to the headboard before shedding his own clothes. Grabbing his favorite short whip, he moved to the bed and climbed onto her. He roughly spread her legs as far as they would go before taking her. It went on for hours and both parties' were breathing heavily, one from pleasure and the other from pain. He got off her and rolled her onto her stomach, the chain digging deeply into her skin.

"That was not good enough Widow, perhaps further encouragement is needed" he smirked, that was a lie, he just wanted an excuse to whip her. He brought the sharp metal tips of the whip down onto her back and felt the slight shiver that went through her body, his smirked turned into a smile as he brought it down again and again until her back was a bloody mess. He then turned to her butt and brought the whip down hard, she let out a small gasp of surprise before falling silent again as the whipping continued. He threw the whip down on the floor and took her again, not bothering to roll her back onto her back and digging his fingers into her wounds. The Widow took it without sound, without a tear being shed. At last he was satisfied or at least too tired to continue and rolled off her. He undid the chain securing her to the bed before shoving her onto the floor.

"I am the Master, you are my slave therefore you sleep on the floor" he told her as he dragged her over to the corner and tied her hands tightly behind her back before chaining her wrists to wall; leaving her in the most uncomfortable position possible before stumbling back into his bed. The Widow ached all over and every time she moved, a sharp almost inhuman pain shot through her. The cold floor and wall prevented her wounds from closing which made the entire night unbearable. It was a tactic to make her suffer through the most pain possible and added the benefit that she was sleep deprived at the same time.

The morning came and the Master awoke; he glanced at her motionless form and smiled. He got off the bed and approached her, she lifted her tired head to meet his gaze and Arkady could see that she was utterly exhausted and that gave him sadistic pleasure; he unchained her and dragged her back to the bed before chaining her wrists back to the headboard. The Widow knew what was coming and wordlessly spread her legs again, ignoring the pain which accompanied the movement. The Master took her for the third time and long hours passed before he stopped. He rolled off her,

"I'm going to get some breakfast. Do not fall asleep Widow; we will continue what we have started when I get back. If you're good I may bring you back a treat" he said as he got changed into clean clothes. Walking to the side of the bed he bent down, kissed her roughly while moving a hand under her and digging his nails into the wounds to make sure she got the message. He stood up abruptly and left the room; leaving her alone with her thoughts and pain and trying her hardest not to fall asleep.

He came back half an hour later and continued his 'punishment' for the next three days. He allowed her to drink water twice a day, food once and go to the toilet (a bucket) once. Throughout that time she was raped another eight times by him and thirteen times by the guards while he slept. It was so she would stay awake; that's what he said. She was repetitively whipped mercilessly and sleep deprived for the entire ordeal. At last he ended it. Calling several guards, he unchained her from the bed and threw her on the ground by the door, she gasped with pain as the floor met her back. The guards came in,

"Get her out of my sight" he told them, looking at her disgustedly as though SHE was the sadistic one. They took one arm each and dragged her back to her room.

Natalia cried out in pain as the hot water from her shower hit her; her entire body was covered in wounds from the whipping. She sank onto her knees and stayed there under the spray for over an hour, breathing deeply to control herself and the pain coursing through her body. She was proud of herself; she had not given him the satisfaction of screaming even once. Natalia turned the water off before dragging herself over to her bed and collapsing onto it, already asleep when her head touched the pillow. She awoke twelve hours later to find Ivan leaning against the wall next to the door with an eyebrow raised. She scrambled out of bed and sank onto her knees in front of him, her muscles screaming at her in pain. She remained that way until she felt his hand on her chin; he forced her to look up roughly at him, his face cold and hard as always. That did not surprise her. Ivan was and always had been a heartless, ruthless man who did not hesitate to beat her to deaths door for the slightest infraction.

"You have grown up well Widow" he murmured in her ear, she gasped and her blood went cold as she looked at her Master. He caught the look,

"Yes Widow, Master Arkady had it recorded and streaming live to the other Masters, we all watched" his smile was twisted as he spoke the words. He loved her reaction, the look of horror on her face. He savored it for a few moments before speaking again,

"Get dressed and down in the training room in thirty minutes. You still have lessons Widow" he ordered her coldly. She bowed her head, subdued, and muttered miserably,

"Yes Master" he nodded once more and left the room. Natalia stayed where she was for several minutes after he had left before standing unsteadily on her feet. She swayed for a moment before stumbling towards her wardrobe; opening it she took out a pair of black combat trousers and a matching, baggy t-shirt. After pulling the clothes on, she went to the mess hall and got herself a bowl of cold porridge.

After eating it she made her way to the training room and found her instructor already there waiting for her.

"Widow" she greeted her

"Ma'am" was the reply.

"Defend yourself" Came the order as the instructor threw a quarter staff at the weakened Widow and began to attack. The Widow caught it on instinct and began to block the blows coming at her from all directions. She succeeded and not a single blow made it past her defenses. The instructor looked pleased and ordered her to attack this time. The Widow gladly obeyed, she rained blows on her instructor, releasing all the anger and humiliation she had suffered over the last week. The instructor fell before the onslaught and the Widow restrained herself from causing any serious damage, despite wanting to beat the instructor into a bloody pulp. The Instructor saw the bloodlust in her student's eyes and a gleam entered her own as she came up with an idea.

"Wait her" she instructed and she left the room only to come back five minutes later with eight recruits. She gestured for the recruits to stop before continuing to walk toward the Widow, whom was standing at attention; her hand clasping the staff tightly.

"You need to get your aggression out Widow" the instructor told her quietly, "These recruits are expendable, use them as you wish" the instructor stepped back,

"Thank you" The Widow replied and stepped forward. The instructor turned to face the recruits,

"Recruits" she called, "This lesson will be taught by the Black Widow; you will obey all her instructions" with that she nodded and took her place by the wall.

"Form up!" shouted the Widow; the recruits hurried to obey.

"Each of you will be given a quarter staff. I will then challenge you in pairs, if you can hold me off for more than three minutes you will be safe. If not then you will face the consequences" she stared at the recruits with death in her eyes. Each recruit was given a staff and the challenges began. The first pair held up for less than a minute and then just as she told them, they faced the consequences. The Widow delivered blow after blow on their unprotected bodies and soon both recruits were dead cause by massive internal bleeding. The second pair met a similar fate as did the others. One pair died with their spines shattered, the last one met their end with a punctured lung. The Black Widow stood there standing over the eight bloody bodies, breathing heavily as the bloodlust died away.

"Dismissed Widow" the instructor told her from the sides. The Widow dropped her staff, bowed low and left.

"She needs reprogramming immediately" the same instructor told Ivan later that day,

"Her aggression knows no bounds, I fear we may have instilled that too deep into her" the instructor continued, shaking her head slightly. Ivan considered what he had been told for a minute,

"Very well send her to medical; I will inform Doctor Yolkov to await her visit" he told the Instructor.

"Sir" the instructor replied and left.

Her screams were heard throughout the entire East wing as her head was invaded and her memories pulled out once again. It was a long process, as they did not want to change everything, only certain things. Once that was over she was sent back to her room to recover. She was awoken by the sound of shouting and gunfire; she quickly got up and changed into her catsuit. She remembered her last mission; it was a success. She remembered being punished for questioning orders, whipped; she grimaced as she recalled the pain. She remembered being taken to the medical wing for treatment but that was it. She assumed she must have drifted off to sleep; that's right. More gunfire was heard and suddenly her door burst open and a couple of guards ran in,

"Ivan wants to see you, NOW!" the leading guard snapped at her. She nodded,

"Where is he?" she asked as she followed him out of the room.

"Armoury" she nodded once more and ran off down the hall; her serum allowing her to get to her destination within mere minutes.

"Master" she said and bowed lowed as she entered the room. Ivan looked over at her and beckoned for her to join him,

"Widow, we are under attack. Another Black ops group is currently trying to destroy us. You are needed to fight possibly with your life, for Mother Russia." He shoved two guns into her hands, which she automatically began to load with bullets. "They are traitors to Mother Russia Widow, they must be obliterated. Is that understood?" he demanded. She finished checking her weapons and placed them in their holsters and turned to face her Master,

"Crystal Master, the enemy will know death by my hands" he smiled at her briefly,

"GO!" He ordered. The Black Widow grabbed a stack of spare ammo and ran out of the room to engage the enemy. 'If it is a fight they want, it is a fight they shall have' she thought. She came across several invaders and mercilessly shot them in the head; little did she know that these were actually Soviet soldiers, tasked with rescuing every recruit they came across. The Red Room, she would find out later was now actually an enemy of Mother Russia after their experimentations was found out. What the Government did not realize however was that the Red Room was connected to the KGB police force and was well funded by many influential people in Russia. The Black Widow got to work, and murdered every enemy she came across without hesitation. Ten. Twenty. Thirty. Fifty. She stopped counting how many she killed after she reached fifty five but still she continued until at last the last man was slaughtered.

Ivan ran up to her with two other Masters with him, all armed,

"Widow, you're alive good."

"Masters" she replied, bowing. Ivan waved his hand impatiently for her to straighten up,

"This base has been compromised, as well as everyone in it. Your orders Widow, is to eliminate every recruit save the dozen who are already on a truck out of here. After you have finished, you will find a vehicle waiting outside; it will take you to another destination. I will meet you there. Understood?" he told her, speaking fast.

"Yes Master" the words were barely out of her mouth before the Masters left. She hurried towards the larger training rooms where the recruits have been ordered to make a stand. In the first room; forty three recruits were standing around the room, absolutely terrified. A dozen guards were situated around the room; with a nod to one, the doors were locked. Another nod to the rest, she and the other guards lifted their weapons and opened fire. The air was filled with screams and cries of pain as the recruits were mowed down with deadly accuracy. The screaming stopped. The Widow simply turned on her heels and unlocked the door before walking out the room to the other training room. This time only twenty recruits were in there; no guards were there. 'So' she thought 'I'm to do this one on my own' she wasn't bothered, not in the slightest. She slammed the door behind her and locked it.

"What's going on Widow?" one of the older recruits asked her, her voice betraying her fear. The Widow shook her head slightly in disgust at the girls weakness but replied,

"We have been given orders to eliminate the threats Sophia" the girl's shoulders sagged slightly as she turned to another girl to rely the orders. Suddenly she crumbled to the ground as a gun shot echoed around the room. All the recruits froze in fear and the Widow began to pick them of one by one ruthlessly. The screams started again but this time were accompanied with cries of,

"What are you doing? Or "I don't want to die." The Black Widow surveyed the scene before her coldly, the screams dying as the life left the owners bodies,

"I eliminated the threat" she told the dying girls coldly before leaving the room. She made her way outside to where her designated vehicle was waiting. Two guards got into the back with her and the car drove off. When they were a mile from the Facility, the self destruct protocol beeped as the timer got to zero and a flaming inferno light up the sky. She never glanced back at the place she called home as it burned behind her.


	11. Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

The sun was coming up by the time the car reached its destination. The Widow got out of the car as it came to a stop, the two guards followed. She stared up at the long, tall building in front of her for a moment before walking forwards towards the large front doors. Two men stood either side guarding the entrance, however they both nodded as she approached; they knew who she was and they were not going to stop her. One guard took the radio from his belt and spoke briefly into it, no doubt warning the superiors of her arrival. He replaced it and nodded to his partner, the man punched in a code and the doors unlocked with a solid THUNK before opening silently. With a nod to the guards, the Widow walked silently into the building, her own guards flanking her. The inside of the building was much like the outside; bleak, morbid and dark. Natalia did not care; if she was honest it looked a lot like the now departed Red Room Facility and she felt almost at home there, it was an atmosphere she was used to. She could sense the pain and the blood that had been spilt here and it was a familiar presence, she knew deep down that it was one she was never going to shed. Blood and pain would surround her for the rest of her life; either she would be the one delivering it or the one experiencing it. This she knew in her heart. A squadron of guards greeted her as she continued her walk into what she presumed was her new home,

"You are the Black Widow?" the leader asked, his eyebrow rising in disbelief

"Yes I am" she answered shortly, irritated that her abilities were being questioned just by how she appeared. The idiot obviously did not realise that she was actually thirty years old not eighteen.

"Right" he obviously did not believe her but did not push the point; "Your Masters are waiting for you, if you would follow me" he turned around and began to walk back the way he came; his squadron taking up positions around them. She followed without a word as did her guards.

The man led her deep into the building, up two flights of stairs and through several corridors before stopping before two large double doors. He knocked twice and waited to be permitted entry; two minutes later a voice from inside called for them to come in. He opened the door and walked in, the Widow followed silently behind him. Her guards were told to wait outside with the rest of the squadron and so she went in alone; the doors were slammed shut behind her as she walked further into the room. The room was exceptionally large with a raised platform opposite the door and beautifully made furniture dotted around the place. Twelve high backed chairs were seated in a half circle on the platform and each was already occupied. She walked until she stood before them all and gracefully dropped to one knee, her head bowed in a sign of respect and submittance. She did not recognize everyone seated on the platform; eight of them were her Masters from the Red Room however the other four she did not know.

"Rise" commanded Ivan. She did as she was told; rising gracefully back to her feet although she kept her eyes on the ground to further reassure them that she knew her place.

"Look up Black Widow" his voice came again, cold and hard as normal. She did and studied each of the Masters carefully, remembering everything about them. There was only one woman and she was one of the four she did not know.

"Widow, as you can see there are several individuals whom you do not know. They are the leaders of the KGB. This is their headquarters and is where you will be staying unless you are on a mission." He stopped, waiting for confirmation that she understood; she gave him a curt nod; he continued,

"I will allow them to introduce themselves in a moment, however before I do, as you can see we are short on our original number; the rest of the Masters are dead. These individuals will be replacing them on this council and so they get the same level of respect from you as we do." The threat was there, loud and clear. She bowed her head,

"Of course Master; they have my unwavering loyalty, respect and obedience as does the rest of this council. I am their weapon to use as they see fit" she replied, her voice expressionless. The Masters nodded their head, pleased with her answer. The Woman leaned forward slightly with a cold smile on her face as she surveyed the woman before her. Ivan gestured with his hand and the four unknown faces introduced themselves one by one,

"I am Master Vladimir"

"I am Master Anton"

"I am Master Dmitry"

"And I am Madame Rozalina" the cold woman finished. The Widow bowed low to each Master as they introduced themselves before standing once again at attention, her eyes staring straight ahead.

"You are dismissed for now Widow; I will see you later to explain how things are going to work here on out" Ivan told her. She bowed once more and left; the guard from earlier followed her out before taking the lead again and leading back down the stairs to the quarters.

"Stay here" he told her and left her alone outside the closed door.

She turned her attention back onto the door and opened it. She stepped inside and surveyed her new room; the room was smaller than her last one with only a mattress on the floor with a thin blanket, a small desk with a wooden chair and a small closet. Another door led off to the bathroom on the left hand wall; she opened it and saw a small sink, shower and toilet, all crammed into the tiny space. She sighed quietly and pulled out the chair and sat down, waiting until her Master came to give her her orders. She was left waiting for three hours before she heard footsteps outside her room; she hurried to her feet as her door was opened. Automatically she bowed low, expecting Ivan, however when she straightened up, she found herself looking at one of the new Masters; Madame Rozalina to be exact. The Widow stiffened as she felt the other woman's gaze upon her, studying her with an almost single-minded determination. Finally she spoke,

"Madame Rozalina, how may I serve you?" her voice quiet and her gaze on the ground. Rozalina for her part looked faintly amused at the display of submittance the deadly assassin before her was showing.

"Firstly Widow, you can look up at me" Natalia's gaze instantly shot up and focussed on her Master.

"Secondly, you are only to address me as either 'my lady' or 'Madame'. Never 'Mistress' or 'Ma'am' or my actual name; understood?"

"As you wish my Lady" the Widow responded, her voice flat. Rozalina nodded her head in satisfaction.

"Follow me Widow, I am going to be one of your new instructors and so we will begin your lessons now" the cold woman spoke, turning on her heels and striding out the door; Natalia hurried after.

"You have had the serum" it was not a question but a statement, still Natalia dipped her head in affirmation.

"Well then that means that my normal lessons will not be good enough for someone so advanced as you." Rozalina allowed a cruel smile to form on her face as she studied her new student. With a sinking heart Natalia knew that these lessons were going to be far from pleasant.

"Three thousand push ups now!" her new instructor ordered suddenly; Natalia instantly dropped to the ground and began to complete her orders. Thirty minutes later she finished and gracefully got to her feet before standing at attention once again.

"Weights" came the next order and instantly the Black Widow made her way over to where the weights were situated. Lying down on the bench, she picked up the weight and looked at Rozalina.

"Do not stop until I tell you otherwise" Natalia nodded slightly and began to easily bench press the weight; it was only four hundred pounds after all. After five minutes, Rozalina held up a hand for her to stop; she did. Another four hundred pounds were added and then Natalia was gestured to continue. The load she was forced to bench press was heavy but not anything she could not lift; she continued lifting the weight for another ten minutes before another four hundred pounds were added. Natalia grunted with exertion as her muscles now began to strain under the amount, yet still she continued. Rozalina smirked as she saw her student struggling; she wanted to test her limits and push them. Oh there was a reason why Madame Rozalina was called Madame Viper; and she was not going to make this pleasant for the Widow, no she was going to take the already exceptional assassin and turn her into someone… no something else. Fifteen minutes later she added a further four hundred pounds. Natalia's armed began to shake as continued to bench press a grand total of sixteen hundred pounds. Twenty minutes later, she let out a gasp as she almost lost her grip on the weight; desperately she looked at her instructor, pleading with her to allow her to stop. Rozalina looked back at her dispassionately.

And so it began…

For another thirty minutes Rozalina made her student continue to bench press sixteen hundred pounds, her whole body drenched in sweat yet not another sound emitted from the tired woman.

"Enough" Natalia gratefully put the weight back onto its rack and stood up, her arms still shaking from the effort.

"The rings" Rozalina told her, with an inward sigh the Black Widow made her way to were the two metal rings hung from the ceiling by chains, two metres from the ground. Thanks to the serum, Natalia could easily make the jump up and so her hand clasped firmly around the rings, leaving her dangling above the ground.

"Lift yourself until the rings are level with your stomach Widow" Rozalina ordered. Natalia complied and began to strain her already shaky muscles as she lifted herself up.

"Splits also" came another order, this time accompanied by a smirk, with a small grunt, the Widow stretched her legs until they were horizontally straight and strained her muscles in her legs to keep them in that position. Madame Viper watched on three metres in front of the hanging woman, a stop watch in her hands as she began to time the Widow. Minutes trickled by slowly as the Widow continued to lift herself up. She knew pain; she had experienced some form of it every single day of her life; however she could say that without a doubt, she had never been so physically stretched beyond her limits in the same way as she was now. A full hour went by and her Master had made no sign that she was going to be let down any time soon; gritting her teeth she focussed all her concentration into staying up. Rozalina saw how close the Widow was to collapsing and smiled cruelly. 'Good' she thought, 'let us see how strong this little spider truly is' fifty-two minutes later and Natalia had truly met her limits, with a gasp she pleaded,

"My Lady, I beg you. Please. Allow me to rest" Rozalina raised an eyebrow unimpressed,

"Failure is not an option Widow, you know this. If you do not want to suffer anymore than necessary I suggest you stay were you are until I command you to do otherwise" was her response. The Widow closed her eyes and felt her last reserves of energy draining from her body; she was almost completely spent but knew that if she was to fall, the pain she would suffer after would make this feel like a pin prick. Twenty one minutes later just as her arms were about to fail her, the merciful command came,

"You may stop" Natalia thankfully dropped back onto the ground, landing on her feet for a moment before her legs collapsed from underneath her and she went down. Rozalina approached her and crouched down in front of the exhausted woman; she placed her hand on Natalia's chin and forced the younger woman to look up at her.

"We are not done Widow, I have not yet broken you" she spoke gently yet cruelly. Natalia's eyes widened slightly but that was the only reaction she gave. Rozalina knew that although she had the Widow's obedience, it was because of her status as her Master not because of her own merit and so she was going to make sure the woman knew exactly who was in charge. She was going to break the famous Black Widow and was going to fill her with a fear that would make even Ivan look like a playground bully.

Standing up, she dragged the Widow with her and began to lead the exhausted woman out of the room and outside. Coming to a stop behind the building, Natalia saw a large running track marked into the ground. One run around the track was a distance of one point five miles; her heart sank a little as she realised what exactly was in stall for her. Rozalina stood next to her, studying her reaction closely with a cold small smile on her lips,

"Start running" she ordered, Natalia glanced briefly at her master and took off at a run.

"Faster" Rozalina shouted at her and she obeyed, going faster and faster until she was running full tilt, thanks to her enhancements she could run a hell of a lot faster than the average person however unfortunately for her, Rozalina wanted her to be able to better her current speed. Round and round she went, tiring every minute as she was pushed to limits and beyond; she was utterly exhausted by the 60th lap but still she kept going. Viper was ruthless and was determined to break her student completely and utterly; only then will she be able to build the Widow back up into her own vision of the perfect assassin. Hours went by and still she ran; the cold winter air no longer affected her burning body until at last she stumbled and collapsed onto her hands and knees, arms and legs shaking violently as she breathed heavily through both her mouth and nose. Viper walked over and stood less than a meter away, looking down dispassionately at the Widow. The Widow raised her tired head and spoke through gasps,

"Please… My Lady… enough… I cannot… cannot continue" her voice straining and quiet; Viper crouched down and took her head in her hands before looking deep into her students eyes. She saw the exhaustion both physical and mental and knew that she close to breaking the Widow completely. In time the Widow will be hers completely.

"We are finished for today Widow, report to me at 0500 tomorrow morning." She told her coldly before straightening up and walking away. Natalia watched her new instructor/Master walk back towards the building and dragged herself back onto her feet and following.

Ivan was waiting for her as she stumbled into her quarters, bone tired and in no mood for anything but sleep. She stopped suddenly when she saw him and stared for a moment not comprehending who he was before realising and quickly bowing low to her Master; gritting her teeth against the pain lancing throughout her body.

"Widow." Ivan greeted her

"Master" she replied, her gaze still on the ground as she straightened up slowly. Ivan cocked his head to one side as he studied his student.

"Good lesson?" he asked

"It was very thorough Master, does that count as good?" she replied, not caring at that moment that she was one, being sassy and two, questioning her Master; something she had not done for more than two decades. Ivan's face turned red with anger and he struck out at her, she fell to the ground with a small hiss of pain as her muscles protested. Grabbing her by her throat he slammed her into the wall,

"Do not ever speak to me like that again. Do you understand?" he hissed at her, squeezing her throat hard, cutting off her oxygen. Natalia tried to speak but could not, her face going slowly purple as she clawed at the hand slowly killing her. She nodded desperately, fear showing in her eyes as still the pressure was kept up; she was now thrashing desperately as dark spots began to appear before her eyes. Ivan held her for another few seconds before releasing her. She dropped to the ground in front of him; gasping and coughing as air was breathed hungrily back into her starved lungs,

"Yes Master" she choked out, "forgive me, it will never happen again" Ivan watched mercilessly in silence for a few minutes before speaking again,

"I know. Now for the reason I came here; for the next five years, Madame Rozalina will be training you in her own unique skill set. Missions during this period will be non-existent. You are to work solely on your skills and then perhaps if Madame Rozalina deems you fit to go back into the field after the five years are up then missions will be back on the table. I am leaving tonight to go and start to rebuild the Red Room elsewhere; the other Red Room Masters will be joining me. I trust you will obey the KGB Masters Widow? This is whom you will work for and answer to for now on" he told her.

"Yes Master" Natalia replied bowing her head from where she was still on the floor. Ivan watched her for a moment,

"Good bye Natalia" he said quietly before he left the room. Natalia took a deep breath and got to her feet unsteadily before making her way to the bathroom to take a shower. After twenty minutes she changed into a pair of combat trousers and a t-shirt that was one of several that had been provided and laid down on the mattress. Wrapping the thin blanket round her shoulders, she closed her eyes drifting off to sleep, thinking about the horrors that no doubt she would be experiencing over the next five years by the hands of Madame Viper.

At 0500 the next morning, Natalia found herself once more in the training room standing opposite Madame Rozalina. They were currently involved in a three way staring match with the floor. Natalia stared at the floor; the floor stared back at her and Rozalina staring at Natalia. The floor won as Rozalina ordered her student to look at her.

"As Ivan no doubt explained to you last night, you will be my pupil for the next five years. My rules are simple: one- be here everyday at 0500. Two- obey my instructors without hesitation or question. Three- you are only allowed to rest/eat/sleep when I allow you to. Are my rules clear enough for you?" she asked, her tone hard,

"Yes Madame" Natalia's response was instant with no hesitation. Viper nodded once and began the same drill as yesterday. For the next year that is all Natalia did everyday, it got longer and harsher every passing day and sometimes she was not allowed to rest/eat or sleep for days at a time. Her endurance and speed grew dramatically and so the assassin entered a new level of ability which no one could compete with. Rozalina was extremely pleased with this though she never showed it; all Natalia ever got from her was pain and criticism, never a nice word or smile. It began to wear the Widow down eventually; she was learning another skill at the same time to all the physical training: sole independence. Rozalina was the only person she was ever permitted to see or speak to for the entirety of the training and even then Rozalina would sometimes just write down her instructions and leave her alone for weeks at a time. The lack of human interaction finally took its final toll one day, one year and three months later. The Black Widow finally broke unable to cope with it any longer. Something snapped inside her again and she knew that her empathy towards others would never be the same again if it ever did come back. Madame Viper had managed to get her back to the mechanical Widow she had been under the influence of the protocol; of course she could still feel pain however Natalia now no longer cared. She felt nothing. She was a machine. A weapon just waiting to be used. Viper now took the training up a level and began to train the Widow in new ways to kill her targets, some mimicked natural causes while others were meant to send a very clear message others. Natalia was taught how to kill with the most mundane and everyday objects. Her natural talent allowed her to learn everything at an accelerated rate which meant that the amount being taught was increased. The years passed quickly and soon the five years were up; Ivan came back soon after the new year to check on her progress. Natalia had definitely changed, that much was clear to Ivan when he watched her while she trained with Viper. She was being put through the pace on a parkour course that had been strategically set up in the field several miles away from the building. She had to complete the course within two minutes otherwise she would be sent back to the beginning to redo it until she did.

"Again" he heard Viper call out and he watched as the Widow immediately ran back to the beginning and took off again when the whistle was blown. It was an impressive display of agility, flexibility and balance and something that even Ivan had to admit would be impossible for anyone else to complete within the two minute mark. He watched for another thirty minutes before walking towards where Viper was standing.

"Madame Rozalina"

"Master Ivan, welcome back"

"Thank you; How has she done?" he gestured towards where Natalia was repeating the course for the god knows how many times. Viper allowed a small proud smile to slip onto her face,

"She has done well. Very well. You may find her to be different after taking her back" Ivan raised an eyebrow at his counter-part,

"I've noticed. I'm not entirely sure I am going to be taking her back. At least not yet, I will be leaving again in a few months" Viper nodded,

"Very well I will continue acting as her handler until you decide otherwise. She is ready to go back out there. She always was you know"

"I know." He replied softly, still staring at his most prized creation. He knew that no matter how hard he tried to recreate what he had made the Widow into, there would never be anyone close to her level of skill. The Widow was born to kill; it was that simple.

"Do you want speak with her?" Rozalina asked a few minutes later after she had judged the silence had gone on long enough. Ivan nodded his head in affirmation.

"WIDOW. HERE NOW!" she shouted across the field. Immediately the Widow flipped off the tall block she was currently standing on and ran over to where her Masters waited. Stopping before them both, she dropped down onto one knee, head bowed without a word. Her breathing was still normal even after doing the course non-stop for over three hours.

"Rise" Rozalina spoke curtly, Natalia did as she was told and stood up, her back straight as she stood to attention.

"How has your training progressed since I've been away?" Ivan asked, he was unnerved by the soullessness he saw in his former students eyes

"Well Master, I have been taught many new skills to the highest level by Madame Rozalina. She has taught me well" her voice matched what he saw, it was cold and hard.

"That is good. Madame Rozalina believes you are ready to go back onto missions, how do you feel about this?" without changing her expression she replied,

"My feelings are neither relevant nor important. If my Masters wish to send me out again; I will obey as I have always done" Ivan was slightly uneasy with the changes he saw in the Widow; he did not know whether they were a good thing or not and was unsure what exactly occurred to make her like this: soulless, remorseless. Viper was secretly pleased with the Widow's responses; she had trained her well that was certain.

"Excellent. Your mission orders will be delivered sometime within the next three days." His tone signified a dismissal; however Natalia nodded to him and turned towards Rozalina,

"Will that be all Madame?" she asked.

"Yes Widow, continue with the course. You are dismissed" The Widow bowed low to each of them and ran back towards the starting point. Ivan turned his attention onto Rozalina,

"What in the name of God did you do to her to get such absolute obedience in such a short time?" he demanded furiously.

"Isolation can be such an effective tool" she answered vaguely, staring at him with a cold smile on her face. Ivan stared back at her waiting for a proper answer. Viper sighed,

"I broke her spirit completely and utterly Ivan. All it took was severe physical exhaustion and lack of human interaction and as you can see the results were spectacular." Ivan shook his head slightly a small smile on his face appearing,

"Why did I not think of that?" he asked himself, approval evident in his tone.

"Because you are like Arkady whom loves torturing her too much to try anything new" Rozalina supplied. Ivan looked at her with surprise,

"You mean you have not tortured her for the entire time she had been with you?" Viper shook her head,

"Of course I have but I prefer to keep her guessing and not just torture her when she does something wrong, whereas you punished her with it only when she displeased you or dedicated at actual lesson block to it. Granted you did it for a lot longer than me but I do it systematically; it instils a healthy amount of respect and fear into her for me."

Ivan just looked at her,

"Anyone ever tell you have evil you are?" he asked with a chuckle

"No. And I'm not evil, I'm just practical." She responded with a similar chuckle,

"Now is that all? I have a student to train" she asked

"Yes, train away" Ivan told her waving his hand towards Natalia. He turned and left, leaving the Master and student alone once more.

Natalia read the folder in front of her as she listened to Master Ivan explaining her mission; even though he was going to be leaving in a few months, he still wanted to make sure that Natalia was his. He saw nothing that made him worry that he had lost any of the respect she had always shown him.

"This mission will not be solo Widow; your partner will be here shortly. Understand that he will be the superior officer on this mission therefore you will do exactly as he says; do we understand each other?" the Widow's head snapped up as she replied,

"Yes Master"

Ivan nodded once and silence resumed as the Widow continued to finish reading her mission briefing. The mission was simple, kidnap and intelligence gathering. She was to get the times, numbers and places of the American's spy ring that had infiltrated Russia. She looked up suddenly as the sound of footsteps caught her ears, thanks to her enhanced hearing it was several minutes later until Ivan could hear them as well. The door opened and standing there, looking as imposing as ever was the Winter Solider…


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just so you guys know this chapter begins in the year 1971- Natalia is now forty three years old but looks nineteen.

Chapter Twelve

The Widow narrowed her eyes as she saw the Winter Soldier; the Soldier may have forgotten why their partnership was severed last time however she had not.

"Uchitel" (teacher) she greeted him curtly as she rose to her feet and bowed. The Soldier looked at her, his face blank and replied,

"Widow"

Natalia glanced at Ivan, unsure what was happening; Ivan caught the look and spoke,

"At ease Widow, the Soldier will be nothing but professional with you and I expect the same to be true with you." He raised an eyebrow at his student; Natalia nodded,

"Of course Master"

"Good. Widow, you are dismissed; the Soldier will meet you in one hour at your designated vehicle." Ivan told her. The Widow bowed low and left the room to prepare for her mission; leaving the Winter Soldier alone with Ivan. Once she was gone Ivan turned his attention towards the recently woken Soldier,

"What do you remember about the Widow?" he asked

"That she is an exceptional assassin and has received the Serum" the Soldier responded, Ivan nodded his head,

"Anything else?" the Soldier frowned, racking his brain for any other piece of information that may seem relevant to this conversation,

"Only that she was my student for several years the last time I awoke" Ivan smiled inwardly, the mind wipe was effective.

"Very well, here is your mission briefing, you have one hour to familiarise yourself with it before meeting the Widow."

"Yes Sir" the Soldier replied, bowed and then left

The Widow was already waiting when the Soldier met her; dressed in civilian clothing and a bag slung over her shoulder, most likely containing a lot of weapons and her catsuit.

"Uchitel" she greeted him with a bow

"Widow" came the reply, "Lets go" he walked round to the drivers side and got in; Natalia copied and slid into the passenger seat next to him. An hour into their journey the Soldier spoke,

"Is the Mission clear for you?"

"Yes Sir" she replied shortly

"Have you done a mission like this before?"

"Yes Sir"

"Was it successful?"

"Yes Sir"

"Is that all you are going to say to me when I ask you a question?"

"No Sir. If your question needs a negative response, I will answer with 'No Sir' Sir"

The Soldier glanced at her with an eyebrow raised, slightly amused by her answers,

"Why not give me a longer answer?"  
"I will if the question requires it Sir"

"Well in that case, what do you think about our mission?"

"My thoughts are not relevant to the mission Sir; I have been given orders and so will obey them"

The Winter Soldier sighed and gave up; silence resumed in the car for the entire journey.

Six hours after they had left the KGB headquarters, the Winter Soldier drove up to a secluded warehouse, brought precisely for this mission. The plan was for the Widow to be inside the café where their target was meeting several of his informants while the Soldier watched on a roof top across the street, to make sure nothing unplanned happened. Once their target had been identified, they would tail him back to his apartment before forcing him into a waiting car and taking him back to the warehouse. After that, the fun starts; well for the two assassins, not so much for the unfortunate target. Their orders were to get the Intel the Masters needed by any means necessary. The assassins/spies got out of the car and walked inside. The Soldier flipped the light switch and found only a single light bulb swinging from the ceiling in the middle of the room; two chairs were found in one corner while a table in another. They inspected every inch of the warehouse before meeting back in the middle where someone had apparently added two lengths of chain with cuffs to the ceiling for their convenience.

"Get the bags" he ordered. The Widow nodded and left, returning a minute later with two bags slung over her shoulders. Handing one to the Soldier, she opened her own and took out a gun; checking it to make sure it was in working order, she tucked it into the waistband of her jeans before digging out several knives from her extensive collection and hid them on her body. The Soldier first took out his rifle and pistol before placing the 'instruments' they would need later onto the table. They spent a further ten minutes setting everything up for their guest before getting back into their car and driving towards the café. The Soldier parked the car further down the street and they both sat there; surveying the streets for possible threats. After five minutes they were both satisfied that there was no immediate threat.

"Are you ready?" he asked softly

"Yes Sir" she replied, her tone cold. He nodded his head and together they got out; the Widow heading towards the café while the Solider took up his position on the roof opposite. The mission had begun.

The Widow sat down by the window and ordered a plain black coffee before surveying the café. Noticing that their target had not yet arrived, she stared out of the window, looking to all passersby as a bored young woman, waiting for whoever she was meeting to show up. Her talent at appearing innocent and non-threatening was remarkable especially considering how nothing could be further from the truth. Fifteen minutes later, the bell above the door rang, signalling that another customer had entered; a quick glance revealed that it was indeed her target. Picking up her coffee, she took a sip while continuing to watch as her mark made contact with his informants; all whom were seated at several different tables. She rolled her eyes at their attempt at secrecy; 'really all of them getting up at the same time to sit together seriously was the most idiotic move they could make' she thought. Another ten minutes later showed the meeting had ended and her target got up to leave, she finished her coffee leisurely and put a ten rouble note on the table before getting up and following her target out the door. She stopped and glanced up at the roof top to where her partner watched and nodded slightly before starting after her mark down the street. The Soldier saw the mark and his partner leave the café and moved to the next stage of the plan; he went back to the car and followed them as they made their way through the streets. The target was a sorry excuse for a spy. That was the thought swirling in her mind as she continued to tail him; honestly for one thing, he didn't bother to double back or check whether or not he was being followed; another thing was that he had no idea he was being shadowed by the deadliest assassin alive. She stopped at the corner and watched as he made his way into a fairly expensive looking apartment building. The Soldier parked the car further up the road and got out before meeting her.

"Everything going to plan?" he asked quietly

"Yes Sir, he suspects nothing" she responded

"Good. Let's go" they nodded simultaneously to each other and began to walk side by side towards the building.

Inside, the lobby was empty save from the desk lady. The Soldier cursed softly, he was hoping to spot the target getting into the elevator to find out his floor.

"Wait here" he told the Widow softly before walking confidently towards the desk,

"Good afternoon Ma'am" he said, giving the lady a brilliant smile. The bored young woman blushed furiously as she was addressed by a wealthy looking, handsome stranger.

"Good afternoon to you to Sir, how may I help you?"

The soldier gave her a rueful smile and replied,

"Well you see, I'm meeting a good friend of mine at his apartment however the problem is that I have forgotten what apartment his is. Do you think you can help?" the desk lady gave a small chuckle,

"Of course, what is his name?"

"Vlad Brodsky" he replied, still smiling. The lady opened the large address book in front of her and ran her finger down the list. She stopped halfway down the second page and tapped her finger next to the name,

"Ah here he is, his apartment number is 24A on floor three. I hope that helps" the Soldier flashed another brilliant smile,

"It does, thank you so much"

"You're very welcome" she replied, blushing again. The Soldier turned away from her and called to the Widow,

"Come on little sister, we won't be here long" the Widow playing the role as the annoyed younger sister, scowled at him as she made her way back to his side,

"We better not" he chuckled and turned to where the desk lady was observing the interaction interestedly,  
"Siblings eh? You love and hate them at the same time" the lady laughed along with him as the Widow deepened her scowl and pulled her 'big brother' towards the elevator,

"Come on then; don't make me wait until I die of old age" the Soldier chuckled again but permitted himself to be pulled into the elevator. As soon as the doors shut, both dropped the act and the assassins were back.

The doors opened on the third floor and the assassins stepped out; walking down the hall they got to the correct apartment. The Soldier turned his back on the door and kept watch down the corridor while the Widow crouched down and picked the lock. Within five seconds, a quiet click was heard as the door unlocked; the Widow rose gracefully back onto her feet and nodded to the Soldier. Quietly, they opened the door and entered the apartment. Walking through the rooms they came across the main bedroom with an en-suite bathroom; through the open door they heard the target singing in the shower. They each took up position on both side of the door and waited with their guns drawn for their target to appear. Five minutes later, the singing and the water stopped as the target stepped out of the shower. He started whistling as he dried himself with his towel before wrapping it round his waist; turning round, he walked straight through the door into the bedroom. The Winter Soldier nodded and the Widow placed her gun to the targets head; he froze and his whistling died on his lips.

"Make a sound and you're dead understood?" the Soldier growled. The target nodded mutely.

"Good. Hands on your head." He ordered the target complied; the gun was removed to make room for his hands, however the Widow place it on his lower back instead.

"Shall I call you Mr Brodsky or Mr Johnson?" the Soldier asked, his voice reflecting the smirk on his face. Johnson started to shake,

"What do you want?"

"Nothing you cannot provide. Firstly however, you are going to get changed into some clothes and then we will be taking a little drive. Understood?"

"Yes" Johnson stammered. The Winter Soldier nodded to the Widow who shoved him forward towards the closet with her gun. Johnson hurriedly took out a pair of jeans and a top; the Widow removed the gun to allow him to get changed however kept him covered. She always stood outside his line of sight; as far as Johnson was concerned he only had one assassin to deal with.

"Let's go" the Soldier told him, as soon as Johnson was finished.

"The guns are going away now, keep in mind though that if you attempt to escape or alert anyone; you and any witnesses will end up dead, including the lovely desk lady in the lobby. Do I make myself clear?" the Soldier asked him softly

"Yes, I make trouble, I end up dead. Got it" Johnson replied nervously. The Soldier chuckled darkly,

"Good"

Johnson was shoved into the elevator first, facing the wall while the two assassins followed, not a word was spoken as they descended. The Widow walked out first, storming through the lobby and out the door without so much of a glance at the desk lady, a look of annoyance on her face. The desk lady spared a glance at the young woman walked out before turning her attention to the two men coming out of the elevator and walking at a much slower speed. The man who asked for information earlier was laughing at something the other one apparently said. Johnson smiled to keep up appearances while the Soldier noticed the attention they were receiving from the lady,

"Thanks for the help, I persuaded my friend here to actually have some fun this evening. Good day to you"

"Good day to you too Sir, have fun" the lady responded, completely oblivious to what was really happening. The two men walked out the front door and to where the car was waiting. The Widow was no where to be seen; the Soldier smirked and knew she was deliberately keeping their target in the dark about how many assailants he had to deal with.

"Get in the passenger seat" he told Johnson gruffly as he made his way round to the driver's seat; Johnson obeyed, he knew that whoever his kidnapper was, he was dangerous and not above shooting innocent people. They sat there in silent for a minute before he heard the door behind him open, just as he was about to turn around; he felt a sharp pain to the back of his head before slumping forward, unconscious.

"That necessary?" the Winter Soldier asked, faintly amused

"Yes Sir" the Widow answered simply as the Soldier began to drive off, chuckling softly. Twenty minutes later, they arrived back at the warehouse. The assassins got out of the car, the Soldier went over to the still unconscious target while the Widow went to unlock the door.

"Hide the car" the Soldier threw over his shoulder at his subordinate as he entered the Warehouse. The Window said nothing as she followed his command and drove the car deeper into the wood surrounding the building.

Entering the warehouse herself she found Johnson already cuffed to the chains hanging form the ceiling and still out cold. The Soldier was waiting for her, his arms crossed as he watched their captive.

"How hard did you hit him Widow?" he asked as she came up silently beside him,

"Not that hard Sir" she paused, "not hard for me anyway" she added as an afterthought. The Soldier glanced at her and shook his head slightly,

"Grab a chair and sit behind him" he told her.

"Yes Sir" she did as she was told and sat down less than a metre behind Johnson without a sound. Ten minutes later, a groan was heard as Johnson began to come back to the world of the conscious.

"Welcome back Mr Johnson" the Soldier told him, sitting on the second chair right in front of the poor guy with a cruel smile on his face.

"Where… where am I?" Johnson asked dazed,

"In an abandoned Warehouse" the Soldier responded bluntly, "you've been out for quite a while, at least four hours" he continued, lying through his teeth. Johnson's eyes widened,

"What happened?" he asked

"Why don't we get to the reason why you are here, hmm?" the Soldier said, ignoring Johnson's question.

"What do you want?"

"I want the names of everyone in your precious spy ring, dates, times and places of all future meetings. Also the names of your informers" the Soldier told him. Johnson snorted,

"Why would I tell you that?"

"Thank you for admitting that you indeed know the information I require" the Soldier said, Johnson paled slightly,

"Wait no I never…" he trailed off, knowing it was useless denying not knowing anything now. The Soldier ignored him again,

"In answer to your previous question however, you will tell me everything I want to know because if you don't, you will suffer more pain than you have ever thought possible." He told the man quietly and calmly. Johnson went white,

"Do your worse" he spat out; trying desperately to act brave. The cruel smile was back,

"I hoped you would say that" the Soldier told him.

"Start" he suddenly ordered. Johnson looked puzzled for a moment, not understanding; then he understood. A wave of pain erupted from his back as the Widow slashed him with one of her knives. A large gash appeared, starting from his left shoulder to his right hip; Johnson screamed in pain. The Widow slashed again and again until his entire back was covered in blood, Johnson continued to scream as his body experienced more and more pain.

"ENOUGH" the Soldier ordered. The slashing immediately stopped and the Widow took a step back. The Soldier stood up and approached the sobbing man,

"Do you want more?" he asked him quietly. Johnson shook his head violently but did not say anything, he breathed deeply as he tried to get himself under control.

"Widow, come here" he called over Johnson's shoulders. The Widow stepped into the light, into Johnson's line of vision.

"Johnson meet The Black Widow" he said, his voice cold as ice. The Black Widow looked at the snivelling man, her features a blank slate and her eyes cold and unflinching while Johnson looked back with pure terror.

"Continue to persuade our guest here that co-operation would be better for his health than resisting" the Soldier ordered the Widow as he retook his seat. The Widow nodded and without a word went over to the table; she allowed her hand to wander over the instruments before picking up a cattle prod. It was a torture device she herself was intimately familiar with. Walking back over to the man, she pressed the prod to his skin and turned it on; Johnson immediately began to spasm and scream from the pain. For the next thirty minutes, the Widow electrocuted the American until burns began to appear on his flesh. After finishing that she replaced the prod back onto the table and picked up a large, curved knife; glancing at the Soldier she slowly walked back over and pressed the knife to his chest, digging in, she began to cut him; he shivered and moaned from the excruciating pain.

"If you do not start telling me what I want to know, I will order my subordinate to start cutting off your prized jewels" the Soldier threatened, his voice still calm, betraying none of the irritation and boredom he was feeling. The Widow didn't care either way and began tracing the knife downwards. Johnson's eyes widened,

"WAIT! NO. WAIT!" he shouted desperately. The Soldier held his hand up and the Widow stepped away, awaiting further instructions.

"You have something to tell me Johnson?" the Soldier asked quietly, approaching the wild-eyed man.

"Yes, yes. You win. I'll tell you everything just stop the pain please" the man pleaded.

"Names" snapped the Soldier

"Maxwell, Jackson, Parker, Evans, Williams, Jones, Lewis, Walker, Davis and King" he sobbed out, the realisation that he was betraying his country and his friends never entered his mind at that moment.

"When will they meet and where?" The Soldier asked quickly,

"There are many safe houses that we use however the next time we are meant to meet is in two days time at 2100 at the Starling Crown restaurant here in the city." The Soldier nodded, knowing the place

"Will they all be there?"

"Yes. They will have their notes and research as well" the Soldier smiled coldly

"Who are your informants?" Johnson stared at him in horror as he began to realise that he was not only sentencing himself to death but his fellow Agents as well. The Widow stepped forwards with the knife, threatening him silently, he quickly began to blab out every informant he had either by volunteers or those he paid. Eventually he ran out of everything of use to say and finished with,

"Will you let me go now? Please I have told you everything I know" the Soldier stared at him for a moment, apparently silently considering what he had just said,

"Of course Johnson, I did promise you that I would stop the pain if you co-operated." he smiled coldly at the captive,

"Widow." He said. The Widow stepped forward and drew her gun and shot him through the head, between the eyes.

"Excellent work Widow" the Soldier complimented her, the Widow replaced her gun back into the waist band of her jeans and bowed low to the Soldier,

"Thank you Sir"

"Leave everything but our bags where they are, I will contact the clean up squad. Mission completed, let's go."

Back at the KGB Headquarters…

"You're back earlier than expected" Ivan commented as he observed the two assassins in front of him.

"The information was easier to get out of the target than originally expected, Sir" replied the Soldier.

"How many members of the spy ring are there?"

"Eleven including him Sir, they will be meeting in two days" Ivan nodded at this,

"Soldier, you will be handling the spy ring operation; Widow your role in this mission has ended, you are dismissed" the Widow bowed low and left the room. Bristling slightly, she remembered the conversation she had with Viper a just before she left for the mission:

"He left you Widow." Viper said, walking slowly around the Widow as she stood at attention in the training room.

"He doubts your skills, even after you saved his life in the attack on the Red Room Facility" she watched as the words sank in,

"You will never be good enough in his eyes, always he will doubt you can do the hardest missions on your own. He will saddle you with a partner like the Winter Soldier, to keep you in line. He will say it's because it is too hard for one person but really it is because he thinks you are not capable of doing it on your own"

The Widow flinched slightly as her words sunk in. Viper continued,

"Ivan is nothing more than a bully Widow; he will never allow you to do the best missions, purely because you are a woman and not a man; but with me…"

Viper stopped in front of her,

"You will be the greatest assassin to have lived; I will never doubt your skills because I have seen what you can do. When the time comes I want to be able to count on your loyalty against Ivan and the other Red Room Masters. I will give you time to think about what I have said; chose wisely my dear"

The Widow straightened her shoulders; she had made her decision. She walked down the corridors until she came to Madame Rozalina's office. She knocked on the door and stood waiting for permission to enter. A feminine voice called out for her to enter, she did. The office was large with a mahogany desk at one end and a high back chair behind it, meanwhile a three-seater sofa was pushed up against the east wall and the floor was covered with a thick red carpet. Madame Rozalina was sitting behind her desk and looked up as her door opened. The Widow walked in, her feet making no noise as she crossed towards the desk; stopping a metre away, the Widow slowly knelt, her head bowed and her hands touching the floor. Madame Rozalina stood up and walked around the desk until she was standing in front of her student.

"Well my dear, I assume you have made a decision?" she asked

The Widow looked up, her eyes just as cold and soulless as the last time Rozalina saw her and answered,

"Yes My Lady I have, you have my loyalty" Rozalina smiled cruelly,

"Swear it" she ordered. The Widow took one of her knives from the hiding place and placed it against her other palm. Slowly and definitely, she sliced the width of her palm before curling her hand into a fist and allowing the blood to seep through her fingers,

"I swear my loyalty to you Madame Rozalina and no other"

"Rise Widow" Rozalina told her softly, the Widow obeyed. Viper placed her hand gently on the Widow's right shoulder,

"You have chosen wisely my dear. I will call on you when the times comes, until then, you must act as though nothing is wrong"

"As you wish Madame" she responded, bowing low.

"Very well. You are dismissed Widow" the Widow bowed again and left the room. As soon as she did, Rozalina returned walked over to the door leading towards another private room, opening it, she found the other three KGB masters waiting for her. With a smile she announced,

"The Black Widow has sworn her loyalty to me." laughter greeted her words.

"Our plan will be put into effect by the end of the week." Master Vladimir spoke, "by that time, Ivan and the others will be no more"

To be continued…


	13. Chapter thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

Screams filled the air as bullets rang out through the corridors. Dead bodies littered the ground as the figure in black slowly approached the sobbing wreck on the ground before her.

"NO DON'T-" the shout was cut off as a single entry wound appeared between his eyes. The figure replaced the gun back into its holster and continued through the hallways to reach their final destination. The figure entered what once was the Master's council room; there several of the Masters were huddled together, trying to figure out what was going on. One caught sight of the figure walking towards them and smiled with relief; believing they were safe. How little they realised that that was as far from the truth as possible.

PRESENT DAY…

"Again!" came the cutting command as the Widow finished the parkour course for the one hundred and eleventh time. Immediately the woman ran back to the beginning and restarted the course. Viper watched on from a distance with a faint smile on her face; it was only twelve more hours until the plan was implemented. The KGB masters had gotten tired of Ivan and the Red Room- they were a failed liability. They had failed to recreate the serum success yet again and so now they were doomed to their fate; the only positive thing that had come out of that programme was the two assassins known as the Winter Soldier and the Black Widow. Thankfully after the Soldier had finished taking down the Spy Ring yesterday, he had been put back to sleep, ready to be used again in the future.

The plan was smart and had been put into action two years ago when the KGB had finally had enough. The number of guards loyal to Ivan and the Red Room were extremely low compared to those loyal to the KGB; not surprising considering it was the KGB headquarters. And the best part of all: their most deadly asset had switched sides thanks to a few home truths wrapped up in little white lies. Still she wasn't surprised by the ease in which she had managed to ensnare the Widow; after all, she had just spent the last six years breaking and moulding the Widow into her own version of the perfect, loyal assassin.

"ENOUGH" she shouted, half an hour later. The Widow immediately ran over to where her true master stood and knelt.

"Rise Widow" Viper told her curtly, the Widow did as she was bidden and stood at attention.

"You know the plan for tonight?" Viper asked quietly, everything rode on the Widow being able to complete her part. The Widow nodded and replied just as softly,

"Yes Madame"

"Good. Be ready. Dismissed." The Widow bowed lowed and ran off back to the direction of the building. Viper watched her leave. 'Soon.' She thought, 'soon the Black Widow will be hers to do as she wished.'

"Is everything ready?" Viper asked as she walked into her private office; the other three Masters already there, deep in discussion.

"Yes Rozalina; the plan has been finalised. We are ready to put the final stages into affect" replied Dmitry.

"Good. The Widow will be preparing for her role; I cannot wait to see the look of betrayal on Ivan's face when he realises his death will come about by his most trusted asset." Rozalina said, chuckling darkly as she finished. The other Masters exchanged grins of their own as they visualized Ivan's face.

"Do we know where the new Red Room Facility is situated?" asked Vladimir from the corner he was sitting in.

"Yes, the floor plans have already been sent to the team on the ground; once we give the order, they will burn the place to the ground, with everyone in it" Dmitry reported. The other Masters nodded.

"I don't see a reason to delay that order" Anton commented, the masters nodded again in agreement,

"Send the order" Rozalina ordered, Vladimir slipped out of the room, the final stages were about to begin.

LATER THAT NIGHT…

The Widow was in her quarters, she knew that the bloodbath will be starting shortly and she wanted to be ready. Slowly she got changed into her black catsuit; spread across the mattress which served as her bed, was a collection of weapons that several guards had provided her earlier that day. She wrapped her Black Widow insignia belt around her waist before fixing her two gun hoisters on her hips. Grabbing the two Glocks she made sure they were fully loaded before placing them in the hoisters, the weights a familiar presence. Next she sheathed the collection of knives on her body: two in each boot, one on each wrist, two on her thighs and four on her belt; along with many others that were not visible to the naked eye. Spare ammo was placed in the pockets on her belt and her long red hair was left trailing down her back. Her pale skin contrasted starkly with the black catsuit and her green eyes; she looked like a vengeful ghost as she slipped out of her door.

She was met by a squadron of guards, each equipped with a gun on their side and a semi-automatic in their hands; one stepped forward,

"What are your orders Widow?"

"Follow me, cut down anyone who gets in our way who is not an ally" the Widow replied, her face blank as she moved to the front of the dozen men; they all fell into step behind her in pairs. Together they marched down the corridors, an imposing and deadly sight to all who beheld them. They came across four guards; two were allies the others were not,

"Kill them" she ordered the men behind her as the guards began to run back the way they came. Two of her men stepped forwards in front of her and opened fire at the retreating guards, catching them in the back. The guards crumbled to the floor with a groan and silence once again fell. The two men stepped aside and the Widow casually walked between them and continued her journey, her men following. The same thing happened again and again as they made their way through the compound; men either died or joined her. The Widow did not care either way, as far as she was concerned, these men were all expendable,

"Split up. Alpha one and two, with me. The rest of you spread out and cut down any resistance you may find; remember, the Red Room masters must receive no prior warning that I am no longer under their command. Understood?"

The soldiers behind her barked their response,

"Yes Ma'am!" she nodded and continued down the corridor she was on, Alpha one and two flanking her.

She walked passed the bodies littering the floor without a single glance; her men were not so composed however; many of these men had been their co-workers for almost a decade and they had not received the same training as her. They both paled and fixed their eyes steadily in front of them as they followed the Widow. The Widow for her part did not care about the men in the slightest; she felt no remorse or guilt as she mowed down anyone who came up against her. She entered one of the Master's studies and found Arkady cowering on the floor, sobbing his tiny heart out as he heard the massacre taking place throughout the building. He looked up as she entered and made an effort to control himself,

"Widow, as your Master I demand you to protect me against these… these traitors" he ordered her pompously. The Widow looked down at the snivelling wreck, unimpressed. Without a word she slowly approached him, taking her gun out of its hoister, she aimed it at Arkady's head. Realising what she was about to do he tried to scramble away but found his back pressed up against his desk,

"NO DON'T-" he was cut off as he slumped back with a bullet between the eyes. The Widow calmly placed her gun back into the hoister and backed out the room, continuing down the hall. Her men followed, not even them spared a glance at the dead man in the room; they knew how sick and twisted the man was and were glad that he was finally dead.

They continued walking until they got to the what used to be the Master's council room; opening the door she found six of the Masters huddled together, talking softly amongst themselves. Five of them were Red Room Masters while the sixth was Master Vladimir. Ivan was the first one to spot her as she approached them, still flanked by her men.

"Widow, I'm glad you are still alive" he sounded relieved.

"Master Ivan" she replied coldly, bowing. She had not yet been given the order to strike and reveal her change of allegiances therefore she still acted as though nothing was wrong. She caught Vladimir's eye and he gave her a small nod in acknowledgment.

"What is the situation out there?" Ivan asked, still oblivious.

"Master Arkady is dead, as are many of the guards. The other Masters statuses are not known to me Master" she replied smoothly. The other Red Room Masters looked worriedly at each other as they heard the news. Ivan was about to speak when suddenly the doors burst open.

Madame Viper, Master Dmitry and Master Anton hurried in the room followed by half a dozen guards. The guards made a big deal of slamming and blockading the door. Unbeknownst to the Red Room Masters, they were actually being locked in rather than the doors being sealed to keeping the 'enemies' out. The trio joined the other masters all whom looked at the new arrivals with serious and worried expressions.

"We know Arkady is dead, the Widow has already informed us of that matter, where are the other Masters?" Gregovitch demanded, Rozalina shot the Widow a small approving look before answering the question,

"Dead Gregovitch, and soon you will be joining them" as soon as she had finished speaking; the guards in the room aimed their guns at the Red Room Masters. They all looked shocked,

"What… what is the meaning of this?" blustered Master Igor; "You dare betray us?" the KGB Masters looked at him, unimpressed with his bravado.

"Yes" drawled Anton, looking bored.

"Gentlemen, kill them all save Ivan please" Rozalina asked the guards around the room; clearly feeling the same way as her male counter-part. As one, the guards pulled their triggers and four bodies slumped to the ground. Ivan looked horrified and quickly turned to the Widow,

"Widow protect me; kill them all!" he shouted desperately, walking so he was behind her. The Widow pulled out one of her Glocks, aimed it at Rozalina and stood in an almost protective stance between Ivan and the KGB.

They stood in that position for several minutes before Vladimir and the others started to chuckle,

"Widow, do you remember what I told you?" asked Rozalina. The Widow responded,

"Yes Madame, I do" with that, the Widow suddenly spun around so that her gun was now focussed on Ivan.

"WIDOW! Widow, what do you think you are doing!? I gave you an order; obey me!" Ivan shouted at her, the Widow stood unmoving, the gun never wavering.

"Poor Ivan, you still have not figured it out, have you?" Rozalina asked, her voice laced with amusement. Ivan narrowed his eyes at her,

"What have you done?" he growled, the KGB Masters looked at him with cruel smiles plastered on their faces,

"I simply persuaded the Widow that her loyalties were misplaced. All this time Ivan, while you were away rebuilding your precious Red Room, I was rebuilding the Widow into a weapon for the KGB. You abandoned the most important asset you had to try and recreate her success. That was your downfall" Viper told him, a vicious smirk on her face as she watched as her words sank into her former colleague. Ivan's face turned from anger to utter betrayal and back again within the space of three seconds.

"I don't believe you. I spent decades conditioning the Widow, she is still loyal to me!" he told the other Masters, denying the evidence to the contrary right in front of him.

"Shall we test that?" Dmitry asked a smirk on his face, "Widow!" he snapped, the Widow turned her gaze sharply onto him,

"Whom do you serve? Where does your loyalty lay?" he asked, the Widow switched her glaze between the two groups several times, an internal battle raging within her. It was true what Ivan said; a big part of her was screaming at her to side and obey him whereas the rest of her was screaming at her to honour the pledge she made to Rozalina. Finally she came to a decision. Turning her gaze onto Ivan she opened her mouth,

"My allegiance lies with Madame Rozalina and the KGB."

Ivan stared at her in shock, the blood draining from his face as he realised he had lost his most loyal and obedient soldier.

"Kneel Widow, and swear it again in front of your old Master" Rozalina said, rubbing it Ivan's face. Immediately the Widow obeyed and knelt before them all; grabbing the knife from the sheathe on her left wrist, she spoke,

"I swear my obedience and loyalty to Madame Rozalina and Masters Vladimir, Anton and Dmitry. I will obey any and all commands they see fit to give me" with a quick slash, she cut her left palm and balled her hand into a fist, allowing the blood to seep through once again. Ivan stared at her in horror while the KGB members looked satisfied.

"Rise Widow" Anton spoke softly, she did as she was told, picking up her Glock from the floor as she went.

"You see Ivan, you've lost" gloated Vladimir. The Widow stood stoic awaiting her orders. With once last glance at Ivan, Rozalina, apparently bored with playing with her food spoke,

"End it Widow, Kill him" gesturing at Ivan. The Widow brought her gun up once again and aimed it at the man she once was willing to die for,

"Good bye Ivan" she told him quietly before pulling the trigger. Ivan slumped to the ground. Dead.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author Note: Beginning of the chapter is taking place in the year 1976

Chapter Fourteen

Five years had passed since that night. The Widow felt no remorse for what she had done as she stared out through the scope built on to her rifle. The man she had been sent to kill had become a painful thorn in her Masters side and they wanted him gone. His name was Nick Fury. From what she knew, Fury was a Director of a top secret international black ops group known only to a select few as S.H.I.E.L.D. She did not care who he was or what he had done; he was her target and nothing more. The target himself was currently in a room on the top floor of the building across from her, standing right by the window, almost daring the world outside the glass to try and shoot him. 'Through the heart Widow' her orders rang inside her head as she took aim, her finger curling on the trigger. The man moved suddenly in the exact same instance as she fired; the bullet flew true and imbedded its self into the man's chest, however she knew that it was not a kill shot. Cursing under her breath, she quickly picked up the shell casing and dismantled the gun before high tailing it out of there. A car was waiting for her on the corner as she walked out of the side entrance. Opening the back door, she slid in quickly and the car shot away from the curb, joining the tide of traffic heading out of the city.

The plane touched down back on Russian soil thirteen hours later; the Widow existed by the rear doors and slipped through the crowd in the airport, avoiding everyone. Another car was waiting for her as she made her way out of the entrance. Without a word she got in and ignored the looks she received from the guards inside. She knew she had failed and was not looking forward to the consequences. The drive lasted three hours before at last the KGB headquarters appeared in the distant.

"Madame Rozalina is waiting for you in her study Widow" a guard informed her as she walked into the building. With a nod to the man, she changed direction and made her way to where Rozalina awaited her.

"Come in" the voice called from within as the Widow knocked. She opened the door and walked in, straight towards the desk at the opposite end of the room. She dropped to one knee, her head bowed. Viper stood up and slowly made her way around her desk until she was standing in front of the kneeling woman, her arms crossed. She stared down at the Widow in silence for a minute before speaking,

"Well? What happened Widow?" she asked her voice cold as ice. The Widow kept her head bowed as she responded, "Forgive me Madame, I failed"

"I know that Widow!" she snapped, "What I want to know is why you failed"

"My target moved at the last moment Madame. The bullet would have killed him, if he had remained still for another second" Madame Viper looked down at her assassin, her features a picture of disproval but then she sighed,

"I will not punish you for something you had no control over Widow, you are dismissed" the Widow lifted her head sharply, not believing that she was not going to be punished for her failure. Hurriedly, before her Master had a chance to change her mind, she rose quickly to her feet and bowed low before backing out the door.

Madame Rozalina made her way to the council room where the other three Masters awaited her.

"What happened?" they demanded as soon as she entered, she pointedly ignored their questions as she moved past them to sit on her chair. The other Masters got the message and followed suit, each taking one of the vacant chairs around the round table in the middle of the room.

"An unforeseeable accident." She answered once they were all settled, "The Widow did everything correctly and would have succeeded if the target had not moved at the last second"

"If the target is still alive, it means we must deal with him by other means at our disposal" growled Anton, the others nodded their heads in agreement,

"I agree, however we must be cautious, the near attempt on Fury's life will mean more security and protection than ever" warned Dmitry, "They will be on their guard now, expecting another attack"

"What are we going to do then?" asked Vladimir. The council was silent for a few minutes as each Master reflected on their current predicament. Rozalina spoke up with a cruel smile,

"If we cannot get to the leader, we hit his people instead"

"What do you have in mind?" asked Anton curiously,

"Why, we are simply going to set the Widow on the trail of his top operatives" she answered, a vicious gleam entering her eyes, "Then maybe SHIELD will learn to back off"

The widow had made her way back to her quarters as soon as she had left Viper's study; she was still shocked that she had not been punished. However like everything her Masters told her, she did not question it. The last five years had been almost relaxing compared to her previous years as the Red Room's top operative. Of course the training was still horrendous and the missions were harder and more frequent, however she had been given more freedom than ever before. No longer did she have to have an escort when she left the building to go the track and parkour course. Life was, for her, never better. As soon as she entered her room, she quickly shed her catsuit and her weapons on her mattress before stepping into the tiny shower in her bathroom. Two minutes later she was back out again and drying herself with a ragged towel. Walking quickly towards her closet, she pulled a tank top and a pair of trouser out and quickly changed before heading back out towards the linguistics room.

There she was met by her tutor, Lucas.

"Sit" he ordered as soon as she entered, she obeyed and sat down at the desk in front of her teacher. He continued, no pleasantries were exchanged,

"Today we will be studying Portuguese; it is a vital skill which you must learn for your next mission. We have two months to make you fluent Widow; can I rely on you to be one hundred percent dedicated to this lesson?"

"Yes Sir" the Widow responded, dipping her head slightly.

"Good, let us begin then" her tutor replied. And so it started; the Widow spent up to seven hours every day with the tutor, learning the language and the accent. She worked hard and thanks to the serum, found the lessons easy if not boring. Not only was she taught the spoken and written language but she was also taught the history.

Soon after the second month began, her tutor deemed that she had nothing more to learn; her accent was flawless and her vocabulary was vast.

"You have done well Widow" her tutor praised her after the lesson had ended one day, "There is nothing more I can teach you on the language and so you will be continuing your days preparing with your combat teacher for this mission" knowing a dismissal when she heard one, the Widow bowed and left the room.

The last days before this 'special' mission, the Widow spent them with Madame Viper in the training room. Despite being one of the Masters of the KGB, she still insisted on continuing training the Widow in that particular area. Taekwondo, judo, MMA, Jiu- jitsu, Aikido, Hapkido, Karate, thirteen ways of Kung Fu, Krav Maga, Tia Chi and another dozen others martial arts were all taught to her to the highest level by Madame Viper.

"You are wondering perhaps what this mission entails" Viper stated as she surveyed her student. The Widow said nothing; she knew it was not her place to second guess or question her Masters.

"There is a man, his name is not important. He will be moved to Saint. Andrews Hospital in seven days' time; your mission Widow is to make sure he never leaves it."

"Of course Madame, I will not fail you a second time" the Widow replied, bowing low. Viper gazed at her, her expression unreadable.

"I'm glad to hear it Widow. Now, attack me, using only Tia Chi" she commanded, already setting into her stance. The Widow obeyed instantly and launched herself up in the air and attacked. Her strikes were strong and fast, darting between Viper's defences with ease; five minutes later, the Master was thrown onto her back with a SLAM, all the breath knocked out of her. The Widow hurried to her side and offered a hand to pull her back up. That was a mistake. Viper yanked her down while simultaneously hooking her leg round her students' ankle; the Widow fell to the ground next to Viper in a large heap. Both remained where they were for several more moments before getting back to their feet.

"Do not offer compassion or mercy to anyone Widow, even me when we are fighting. Do you understand?" Viper's words were cold and hard. The Widow lowered her gaze to the floor and replied,

"Yes Madame, Forgive me, it will not happen again" Viper grunted in response and left the room without another look back.

The plane touched down and the Widow stepped out on to the grounds of São Paulo. Looking round, she slowly walked into the airport where the chauffeur's' were waiting for their customers. Glancing at the signs they held, she quickly distinguished hers. A young man barely twenty-five years old held a sign for 'Miss Eliana López'. She hurried over to him.

"You are Miss López?" the driver asked

"Eu sou sim" (I am, yes") she answered smoothly. The driver nodded and gestured for her to follow him; he led outside towards an expensive looking car and opened the back door for her. She got in with a muttered 'thank you' and the door was shut behind her, the driver proceeded round to the driver's seat and slipped in. Once they were inside the safety of the car, away from the eyes of the crowd; their postures changed entirely.

"Widow, it is a great honour to be working with you" the driver exploded excitedly; apparently he was an agent for the KGB and an admirer of her.

"Thank you Agent Korsakov. Is my equipment ready?" the Widow replied, professional as ever. The agent deflated slightly at her cold tone however responded professionally,

"Yes Widow, everything you asked for is in the trunk. I will be dropping you off at a safe house several streets away from the hospital; from then on you will be on your own. Your deadline to be back at the extraction point expires in exactly twelve hours." She nodded her head and silence resumed for the rest of the journey. Twenty minutes later, the car stopped outside a rundown house on a deserted street.

"Good Luck" he commented as the Widow got out. She went round to the trunk and popped it open before taking out the gym bag. Slinging it over one shoulder, she slammed the trunk closed and began to walk towards the front door, the car squealing away behind her.

The Safe house was dirty. That was the first thought that entered her head. Still she did not care, she had slept and lived in worse places; at least this one actually had real furniture. Going over to the table, she quickly emptied the contents of the bag and began to sift through them. There were several blocks of C4 and a timer, along with her knife collection and her new gun; a SIG-Saucer with plenty of ammo. Her disguise was also in there: a nurse outfit, complete with a false identity badge and a list of the pass codes for the restricted areas. The floor plans had also been included, she picked them up and quickly began to study and memorize them- it only took twenty minutes. She quickly got changed and packed her equipment into what she was told was her 'handbag'- she had no what it was. The rest of the stuff was stuffed back into the gym bag and hidden. The safe house would be scrubbed clean of her presence later.

Slamming the door closed behind her, the Widow began her trek up towards the hospital. Her driver was correct, St. Andrews was only three streets away and it only took her seven minutes to walk the distance. Entering through the front entrance, she walked confidentially past the reception desk and through a door which was labelled, 'STAFF ONLY'. The door had a pass code lock which the assassin easily thumbed in. Inside the room was a stair case leading downwards towards the basement her precise location. Quietly she made her decent without a sound and soon found herself in a large, empty room complete with the infrastructure of the building. Working quickly she pulled out several blocks of the C4 and connected them to the weakest parts of the base. Connecting the timer, she set the bombs to go off in exactly twenty five minutes before gathering her bag again and making her way back up to the lobby. Without being noticed either by people or cameras, she made her way towards the ICU section, passing many families and medical professionals as she walked the halls. Slipping into a supply closet after doing a round to make sure that her target indeed was actually there, she pulled out the remaining C4 block and set it to detonate in exactly eighteen minutes. Eighteen minutes. That is how long she had to get out of there and as far away as possible.

She came back out of the supply closet carrying extra bandages as to make no one suspicious of her actions and began to walk back the way she came. Suddenly a shout came from behind her,

"Excuse me!" the Widow turned round, slipping into the friendly nurse she was portraying,

"Yes young sir, how can I help you?" she asked, her accent flawless, with a smile as she saw a boy no older than seven run towards her. The boy flung himself into her arms and began to cry; startled she patted him on the back, completely unsure what to do in this situation. Give her an order to take down thirty men, she would do it in a hard beat however, ask her to comfort a small child and she had no clue.

"I'm lost… can't… can't find my… my mummy" the child sobbed out. The Widow understood and picked up the boy,

"Where did you last see your mummy?" she asked gently,

"Children's ward" he replied quietly. The Widow nodded, her internal clock telling her she had sixteen minutes until the bombs went off. 'I have time' she thought.

"Well then I better take you back there. Would you like that?" she asked, already carrying the little boy through the corridors confidently despite never actually walking down them before. The little boy nodded his head and tried his hardest not to cry.

One minute later, the Widow carried the boy into the noisy children's ward; everywhere she looked there was laughing children of all ages and loving, proud parents dotted around, watching over them. A mother suddenly rushed up to her and yanked the little boy from her arms, the mother hugged her son tightly, murmuring soft words in his ear as the boy attempted to stop the fresh tears spilling down his face,

"Thank you so much for finding him" the mother said suddenly, turning to face the Widow, the Widow just smiled and replied,

"No worries, I was happy to help" the little boy looked up at her shyly and whispered his own thanks. The Widow nodded and glanced once more around the ward and with a sinking heart, she realised she was sentencing them all to death. For the first time in her life she wanted to disobey her orders and save the little boy and his mother. She turned round to warn them but stopped; years and years of conditioning would not allow her to. Obedience was ingrained too deeply for her to ignore and so with a cold heart, she walked back out the door without a glance back, ignoring the laughter ringing in her ears by the innocents she had now murdered.

Nine minutes. She had nine minutes to get out of there. The Widow slipped out the back exist, unconsciously avoiding the cameras and began to walk away, her face a cold, hard mask. Two streets away, she stopped and turned around, she could see the hospital from where she stood as she counted down, three… two…one…BOOM! The Widow walked away as the bombs detonated and screams pierced the air. Any remorse or guilt that welled up in her was soon buried deep inside; abandoned and soon forgotten. She had completed her mission; that's all that mattered. She continued to walk away calmly as cries of agony and the alarms of the police and ambulances from other hospitals were added to the din in the air. As soon as she felt that she was no longer going to be under suspicion, she picked up speed and ran. The bag containing the evidence of her mission clutched tightly in her right hand as she ran through the streets towards the extraction point.

The sun was setting when she finally reached her destination, three hours ahead of schedule. Two guards were waiting for her by a car and they gestured for her to get in without a word passing their lips. The Widow obeyed and soon the three of them where driving in the opposite direction. The extraction plan was to drive to the next airport in Brazil as to avoid suspicions from the local authorities; the Widow did not care either way: she had completed her mission. Two hours past in silence as they sped through the streets and the Widow stared out the window watching the people fly by. They arrived at the airport shortly after and she got out of the car without a word before walking slowly towards a private plane that was already waiting for her on the tarmac. Ascending the stairs, she heard the voices of the Masters deep in conversation. Keeping her face devoid of all emotion, she walked into the plane and stood before them all. The Masters stopped talking as soon as she had entered and silence fell; the Widow dropped to one knee, her head bowed as Madame Rozalina stood up and started to scrutinize her student,

"The Mission was successful" she stated, the Widow did not reply, "Do you want to know how many died during your attack Widow?" she asked.

Without waiting for a response, she continued, "One thousand two hundred and eighty seven people. Four hundred and eighteen were children" her voice was cold and hard yet a vicious grin had worked its way onto her face. Rozalina was a sociopath; she did not care about the lives the Widow had taken to take down her target.

Her head still bowed, the Widow did not allow her Masters to see how her face paled slightly as she heard the number she had murdered. 'Guilt is a weakness; I must not feel…I must not feel… I must not feel' she repeated the thought again and again like a mantra and slowly felt the sudden wave of guilt disappear. Finally she looked up, her face still impressively blank and spoke,

"Would you have me do anything else, Madame?" she asked her voice just as cold as Vipers. The Masters were pleased at her response; the Widow truly was an unfeeling machine.

"No Widow, not for the time being. Please write up your report and give it to me when you are done" replied Viper. The Widow got gracefully back onto her feet and moved off to the side and sat down in a chair far away from her Masters, already running through the report in her head.

They arrived back on Russian soil four hour later and another two hours later found her back in the familiar headquarters of the KGB, her home. After handing in her report and being dismissed for the night, the Widow went straight to her quarters. After having a short shower, she quickly changed and climbed onto the mattress which served as her bed. Shutting her eyes, she found herself drifting slowly off to sleep, her thoughts lingering on the deaths of the children she had caused. She frowned to herself as she was startled awake, two hours later, wondering why this mission was affecting her so. It was not the first time she had killed innocents, especially children and she had the feeling it would not be the last. She knew that if the Masters found out how much it was affecting her, they would not hesitate to wipe her memory again and that was precisely what she wanted to avoid. Her memories had not been wiped in almost a decade and that was how she wanted it to stay. Of course she knew that some of her memories were not to be trusted but the problem was she had no clue of which ones were real and which ones had been planted. Sighing softly she rolled onto her other side and closed her eyes again, drifting off to sleep once more.

She was awoken by footsteps coming down the hall, she frowned, no one was allowed to walk anywhere near her room while she was asleep since it did not take much to wake her up, especially since the serum. Rising swiftly to her feet, she pulled the catsuit from its hanger in her closet and quickly changed. She had just finished tying her hair up into a high ponytail when a knock was heard on her door. Walking over swiftly, she opened up and saw a guard looking at her with a nervous expression; he obviously knew that waking an assassin was not the wisest move a person could do.

"Yes?" she asked curtly

"Master Dmitry has asked for your presence in his study Widow" he responded. Immediately the Widow moved passed him and began to walk down the corridor without a look back at the relieved guard.

Dmitry was waiting for her as she entered the room, bowing deeply she stood to attention as he paced the room in front of her.

"Widow, thank you for coming so quickly" he told her distractedly, the Widow merely dipped her head in acknowledgment and remained silent. Finally Dmitry stopped his pacing and turned to face her, a worried expression on his face,

"Widow, as you know your attempt to kill Director Fury failed" he paused briefly before continuing; "SHIELD has not taken the attempt lightly and have begun a full blown attack against our operatives already in America." He stopped again, looking at her.

"What are my orders Master?" she replied, knowing exactly what this meant for her.

"Your orders Widow, is to hunt down every damn SHIELD operative you can find!" he shouted at her. Her face remained stony, all too aware that his anger was getting the better of him. He took several deep breaths as he tried to control himself. Not bothering to apologise- apologies were a weakness- he spoke again, more quietly,

"You will be receiving a list of SHIELD's top operatives Widow, your orders are to hunt them down and kill them. Their bodies must be a warning to SHIELD. Do you understand?"

"Yes Master" the Widow responded

"A plane is waiting for you at the airstrip five miles south from here, it will take you to America, the list and other equipment will already be on it. You are dismissed." Dmitry told her, waving his hand towards the door. The Widow bowed low once more and left the room.

The Widow let out a weary sigh as she settled down in the pilot chair; the guard in the co-pilot seat shot her a concerned look. Waving a dismissive hand at him, she returned her attention back to the controls while the guard just shrugged his shoulders and stared out the windscreen. It had only been six hours since she had gotten back from her last mission and she was already being sent out on another; not that she minded or cared however she got the feeling that this one was going to take a lot longer than the normal assassinations she was accustomed to.

"Take the controls for a minute" she ordered the guard as she stood up and left the cockpit; the guard scrambled to obey and to keep the plane level. The Widow returned two minutes later with the list which she had been promised. Sitting back down, she made no move to resume control as she flicked through the list; the guard uncomfortably continued.

Agent L. Blake

Agent R. Parker

Agent D. Willis

Agent A. Baker

Agent H. White

Agent P. Taylor

Agent S. Lewis

Agent A. Young

Agent H. Lee

On and on the list went, at least two dozen names were written; the Widow raised an eyebrow at the so called 'top spies' and felt that maybe, just maybe there would be a challenge in this somewhere. Slipping the list into the inside pocket of her jacket, she took the controls back, much to the relief of the guard and proceeded to fly the plane for the next thirteen hours without rest. Finally she came to the private airstrip which the KGB had brought anomalously in America; touching the plane down gently, she got swiftly to her feet and walked out of the plane, grabbing her equipment on her way out. The guard hurried to catch up with her, while other guards milled around outside, ready to do the post-flight checks. A car was waiting for her and she got into the driver's seat without a word before driving off and leaving the guard standing there, cursing her. 'Idiot' she thought, the guard knew that he was only accompanying her in the plane, the mission was for her alone as the only capable assassin they had.

Two hours later, she was checking into a hotel in the middle of New York under the name 'Natalie Roman'. Ms Roman was issued a room on the thirtieth floor out of ninety and was shown there almost immediately after her arrival. The Widow instantly got to work as soon as the door closed; checking for bugs and recording equipment first before opening her bag of equipment and laying it all out on the bed. Her catsuit was left in the bag ready for use later that night. For now though, she studied everything profile provided by the KGB on her targets and found that many of them did not live further than two streets away from SHIELD headquarters. She tucked her SIG into her belt before leaving the room and going 'hunting'. Twenty minutes later she found herself staking out the apartment belonging to Agent L. Blake; she knew that he was in there within the first two minutes of taking up her position. Deciding that there was no point waiting for the cover of darkness, especially when her target could move at any moment; the Widow slowly walked round the back ally near the building and began to climb the fire escape on the side of the building next door. Once on the roof, she easily leapt off the side and landed on the roof of her targets home. Keeping low to the ground, she made her way towards the roof door and picked the lock before slipping inside, down the stairs and approaching the targets door.

Realising that she would need to be invited inside in order to covertly make the kill, she knocked a couple of times and took a step back waiting for the door to be opened. A few seconds later it did and a young, blue eyed man appeared in the doorway with a grin on his face. The guy did not look like an agent or spy at all and that threw the Widow for a moment before she answered his grin with her own.

"Can I help you?" he asked, the ridiculous grin still on his face

"Hi, sorry to bother you but I live a couple of doors down and I was wondering if you had any sugar I could use, me, the idiot I am, forgot to buy more this morning and I was making a birthday cake for my nephew" she gave him a rueful smile; the agent laughed and replied,

"Of course, come on in, it's just in the kitchen" turning around he walked back into his apartment, leaving the door open for the Widow to follow. She rolled her eyes at the ease of manipulating him before following him in, closing the door behind her.

"So how old is your nephew?" he asked

"Seven years old tomorrow" she replied without missing a beat

"Good age, what is his name?" he paused for a moment before hurrying on, "that is if you do not mind telling me" she chuckled as Blake started to root round his cupboards for the promised sugar,

"His name is Nick and no I don't mind" she smirked inside at the joke, she knew he would instantly think of his esteemed Director. He laughed out loud obviously getting the connection that he did not she knew,

"An excellent name, you must love him to bits if you are going to all this trouble to bake him a cake" he replied handing her a pack of sugar. 'Love is for children' floated round her head as a suddenly a knife appeared in her hand, it was visible for a moment before a flash of metal was spotted in the air before finally it lodged itself in the agents throat. Blake had no time to make a noise before his body thumped to the ground, dead. The Widow calmly took the knife from his throat before wiping the door handle and anything else she had touched and making her way to his fire escape. Looking down she found she was once again in a back alley, three floors from the ground. Without hesitation she cleared the railings and fell to the ground, landing on her feet and walking off as though she had merely jumped off a step.

One down…. Twenty three to go.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen

It had been six months, six months since Dmitry had sent her off with a list of every SHIELD agent he wanted dead. So far the Widow had managed to kill twenty- one of the two dozen she had been given and during that time she had had to go hunting round twelve different countries trying to find them. The Widow was currently tracking number twenty two (an Agent Todd) in Spain and was closing in. The agent was actually rather good at covering her tracks and the Widow put it down to her taking the threat to her life more seriously than other agents had. Still, the Widow had grown tired of this cat and mouse game and was ready to close in for the kill. Of course SHIELD knew exactly who was behind the murders; not the murderer per se but the organisation behind it. The Widow had moved around like a ghost, never allowing a single fibre, hair or photo to be on record.

"It's time to stop running Agent Todd" a cold voice spoke from behind her, the frazzled looking agent spun round, her gun coming to bare before she had even set her sights on the woman in front of her.

"Who are you? Why are you hunting me?" she demanded, angry and defiant to the last,

"My name is not important, I am hunting you because your organisation has been hunting mine" came the response, before a gun somehow appeared in the assassin's hand and a single shot rang out. The agent known as Todd fell to the ground, a hole between her eyes. The Widow simply turned and walked away, already planning how to catch her next victim.

Less than twenty four hours later, the Widow found herself in Berlin, Germany. She was getting bored with this continuance chase; she had not rested properly in six weeks since she had been busy tracking down every lead she came across. The Widow did not dare to stop and return to her headquarters though, since she knew full well the consequences that would greet her would be painful to say the least. With a grunt she pushed on, she was currently tracing down a lead that one of her informants had told her earlier that day. The Agent was currently holed up in what appeared to be the German SHIELD Headquarters, thinking that he would be save with other agents milling around the place. The Widow stopped several roof tops away and watched the heavily secured building with watchful eyes, noting all the entrances and exists and how many guards patrolled and when. She rolled her eyes at what she saw, sure it would be enough to keep most people out, but she could hardly be considered to be in that category.

At midnight that night she struck. Using the shadows, she moved forwards quietly without any camera, alarms or guards noticing her. Realising that searching the entire compound would be impossible, the Widow grabbed the next agent she came across and promised to let him live if he told her where she could find Young. The agent snorted and told her to go to hell, she smiled coldly at that,

"I already have" she said before shoving her knife into his thigh and covering his mouth to muffle the screams.

"Do you want more?" she asked quietly, the man shook his head,

"Good. Now, tell me where Young is" she removed her hand so he could talk, however as soon as she did, the man started to scream.

Cursing, the Widow slammed her hand back over his mouth within a second of the screaming starting and shoved the knife into the opposite thigh. The man's eyes widened a second time and he began to sob as he felt blood gushing from his wounds,

"If you do not tell me where he is I will kill every agent I come across and it will be all on you" she told him, her voice deadly and serious. The agent looked into her eyes and saw that she would carry out her threat without hesitation. He nodded rigorously and she slowly removed her hand for the second time,

"He's… he's in his room" he gulped as another wave of pain hit him before continuing, "second floor, first room on the right" the Widow nodded before her eyes went cold; well even more cold than they already were,

"Thank you for your co-operation although I cannot allow you to live" she told him quietly, his eyes widened again and his face went deathly pale,

"But… but you promised" she simply rolled her eyes,

"I'm an assassin and a spy; did you really think you could trust a word I say? And besides, you know what I look like; I cannot allow that information to get out into the open, ESPECIALLY your organisation."

"No please. I won't tell anyone I swear" she looked at him as though she truly wanted to believe him for a moment before the hard, blank look was back,

"Good Bye" she told him quietly before slitting his throat swiftly.

Quickly hiding the body in the supply closet, she set off again, following the directions that the shortly deceased agent had given her. She came across several more agents as she made her way to the second floor and she killed them all without a second thought. Coming to the second floor, she quickly turned to the first door on the right and bent down to examine the lock. Cursing, she found it to be a DNA operated system. If she had the time and equipment, the Widow could have broken through within minutes however she had neither and so had to resort to just knocking. Once. Twice and she waited. Her patience was rewarded two minutes later with the door opening and a tired looking agent staring at her. Before he could comprehend what was happening, the Widow had her hand around his neck and shoved him back into the room, the other hand shutting the door behind her. Young's eyes widened in fear as he realised that the assassin was actually here in his room, in one of the most secure buildings in the world. The Widow did not waste any time on small chat, a sharp movement to the left and the man's neck broke with a SNAP. The body fell to the ground as she stepped back and slipped out of the door, retracing her footsteps back out the compound.

Twenty three down one to go.

'Finally the last one' she thought as she found herself back in America. The last Agent on the list; Agent Frost, was holed up in a safe house, SHIELD had set up for him. It had been easy to hack into their network and find out the information she wanted to know; she silently thanked her Masters for giving her such a wide skill set. The safe house was situated in the lovely city of LA; a strange place to hide but nevertheless would have been effective if she had been anyone else. The safe house was a small one floor bungalow, in the lowest populated area and it did not have the greatest security systems employed to keeping intruders out. Rolling her eyes slightly, the Widow silently moved forwards, using the cover of darkness to get to the back door unseen. Since this one was the last one, she was going to have to do something creative to make sure that SHIELD got the message to lay off on KGB operatives. Master Dmitry had made it clear to her that the deaths should send a warning to all. She had murdered every agent a different way: suffocation, electrocuted, shot, stabbed, beaten, decapitated etc. If she was being honest with herself, she hated what she had had to do. The Widow could kill anyone without hesitation however deliberately having to mutate the bodies was something she was finding herself increasingly reluctant to do. Still, it was what her Masters had ordered her to do and she was not about to disobey them.

Crouching down at the door, she quickly pulled out her lock pick and unlocked the door within five seconds without setting off any alarms that may or may not have been set. Opening the door quietly, the Widow slipped inside and began to make her further into the house. All the lights were off; suggesting that he was asleep in one of the rooms, coming to a closed door onto her right, the Widow slowly opened the door and walked inside. Without bothering to give him a chance to wake up and see his murderer, the Widow pulled her gun from its holster and attached a silencer onto the end before aiming it at Frost's head and pulling the trigger. Quickly putting the gun away, the Widow pulled out a knife and cut a deep cut in his stomach, allowing the blood to seep out. She placed one gloved finger in the blood and began to write her final warning on the wall:

"STAY AWAY OR MORE SHALL COME. Обещание." (A PROMISE)

Satisfied that her mission was now completed, the Widow slipped back out the bungalow and to her car where she knew she had to drive back to the private air strip the KGB had brought. Eight hours later, she reached her destination and climbed aboard the waiting plane. A single guard was already in the cock pit when she walked in,

"Mission accomplished?" the guard asked as the Widow took her seat in the pilots' chair.

"Yes" she replied curtly. The guard simply nodded his head and settled down for the flight home. The Widow wished she could follow his example and sleep having been awake for seventy two hours straight; unfortunately she had to pilot the plane. Thirteen hours later, the plane touched down back on Russian soil. The Widow sighed as she unbuckled her seatbelt and moved towards the doors, ready to go home and sleep. It had now been eighty five hours without a wink of sleep and she was tired, no, scratch that; she was exhausted.

"The Masters are waiting for you in the council chamber Widow" another guard informed her as she moved towards the waiting car that was going to take her back to her headquarters. She simply nodded her head and got in.

"Welcome home Widow" Viper said as soon as she entered the room. The Widow dropped to one knee and bowed her head when she got to the middle of the room.

"Rise Widow" Vladimir informed her. She obeyed and stood to attention.

"Well done Widow, we have watched the fruits of your labour and I must say I am impressed" Dmitry praised her, she bowed her head in acknowledgment,

"Thank you Master"

"SHIELD has certainly taken your message to heart Widow; they have stopped harassing our operatives and have stopped all missions involving the Soviet Union. Apparently you made quite an impression on the World Security Council" Anton told her, a gleam of pride entering his eyes.

"We will be awaiting your report Widow, you are dismissed" Viper told her coldly, not allowing the pride she felt for her student show.

"Yes Madame" replied the Widow, her voice emotionless as she bowed low and left the room.

She sighed in relief as she finished her report. Submitting the document, the Widow took off her catsuit and took a shower. Five minutes later, she walked back into her room and changed into a clean pair of trousers and top before collapsing onto her mattress, asleep before her head hit the pillow. Eight hours later she awoke slowly. She looked up at her ceiling and began to think about her latest mission; she had murdered her twenty four targets along with eight others who had got in her way. Sighing, she closed her eyes again for a moment and hoped that she would not be sent on another mission too soon. Another five minutes passed before she finally summoned the will to get up and dress, another ten minutes and she was walking down the corridor towards the mess hall. Glancing at the clock as she took her bowl of sloppy porridge, she realised it was four o'clock in the morning. Looking around the room, she realised that would also explain why she was the only one in there.

She was left alone for the remainder of the day before getting instructions that her lessons would be resumed the next day in the training room at 0600. With nothing else to do, the Widow went down to her favourite training room and spent the day sparring with the guards, all whom had apparently been given orders to spar with her if she asked for it. It was the closest thing to fun she could experience and the Widow relished every moment. Soon enough though, the guards figured out that if she could not find them, then they would not have to fight her therefore pretty soon, the Widow found herself alone once again. She shrugged once and began on the equipment, starting with the rings. Easily making the two metre jump thanks to her serum, the Widow pulled herself up until the rings where level with her waist and proceeded to hang there. Four hours went by before she dropped back to the ground with a small gasp as her arms began to shake with exertion. Satisfied with her workout, the Widow returned to her quarters.

A mirror had been added to her cramped bathroom while she had been gone and that was where she was to be found for the next hour, looking at her reflection. She stared at her reflection for a long time, not quite believing the young woman staring back at her. The Widow had no idea what her true age was due to the mind wipes and implants however she definitely knew it was older than the nineteen year old woman she saw. The only feature she could spot that allowed her to be certain of that was the eyes. Her eyes were so old and dark as though shadows lived and lurked behind them; which, she supposed, was true. Death and darkness had forever been her companions and always will be. But as she stood there, she found herself thinking that she wanted more than that. She wanted more than to just be a mindless, killing machine.

Over the last decade the mind control that had been placed on her was beginning to wear off and the Widow was beginning to experience freedom with her thoughts, her own thoughts and opinions and not the ones that she had been brainwashed into believing all these years. It was a foreign experience and one she did not know was a good or bad one yet; a massive part of her was screaming at her to obey her Masters and believe what they told her; after all they had not let her down before. And yet, there was a small part of her that was growing, telling her that what she was doing was wrong and that she had a choice. She hated the conscience that was growing because it was making her question everything she knew, she didn't want to know any different, and she could not handle anything else for this was all she had known. If she was being honest with herself she would go as far stating that she feared it. She feared deep down where it would lead her.

The next morning she met Madame Viper in the training room at the appointed time and they were currently sparring with a variety of weaponry: nun shucks, swords, knives, quarter staff, rope etc. For hours they trained and the Widow was beginning to get back the familiarity that routine brought her; she had missed this, training. Viper ceased her attack and lowered her weapon (swords); the Widow followed suit, sweat covering her yet her breathing remained even.

"Excellent work Widow, as always" Viper complimented her student, pleased. The Widow dipped her head in thanks.

"Be back her tomorrow morning, same time. You are dismissed"

"Yes Madame" the Widow bowed and left, sliding her swords into their sheathes on her back. She was a formidable opponent with swords however the Widow's favourite weapon for fighting with was her guns; they were quick and easy to use and not to mention inconspicuous when she had to go on missions involving civilians.

She walked to her next lesson in the shooting range; she loved to shoot.

"Widow" her instructor greeted her

"Sir" she replied with a small bow

"Today Widow, we are going to do something new. I understand you just got back from a six month mission yesterday?" he paused, she nodded, he continued, "I thought we would have a fun lesson before getting back to the normal criteria tomorrow" he grinned at her manically. She looked at him for a moment before glancing behind him and found a couple of bows and two quivers of arrows.

"Archery Sir?" she asked nervously. The Instructor nodded enthusiastically,

"Yep. This is not actually something I am allowed to teach you considering a bow and arrow is an outdated weapon, however, it is a fun thing to do therefore I would like you to try. Ready?" he spoke fast, unable to contain his excitement, the instructor loved archery in his own time and thought it was high time the master assassin/spy learnt at least the basics. Grabbing one bow and quiver, he handed them over to his student before retrieving the second pair for himself.

"Now watch me" he instructed before notching an arrow, aiming it at the target and releasing the arrow. The arrow flew across the room before embedding its head into the bull's-eye. He grinned at his success and gestured for her to nock an arrow onto her own bow,

"You try" he encouraged her. She obeyed and aimed her own arrow at the target. Releasing it, she watched it fly and embed its self in the ring surrounding the bulls-eye.

"Good. Again" the instructor told her. And so for the next two hours, the Widow fired arrow after arrow into the target and hitting the bulls-eyes eleven arrows out of every twelve. The instructor was ecstatic when the lesson came to an end,

"Excellent work Widow, I knew you could do it. Sadly though it will be a one off" he finished regretfully. The Widow gave him a small smile, she had actually enjoyed herself.

"We will begin your normal lessons tomorrow, you may leave" the instructor told her, taking the bow from her hands. The Widow bowed and left.

For the next year, missions were given with frequency yet never lasting more than two days at a time; her training continued and the Widow found herself back into the routine that she had lived with all her life. She was content with what she had and the voice of conscience was getting smaller once more, for which she was grateful for. The Masters summoned her one evening to the council chambers and the Widow made her way there with all speed, not daring to keep them waiting. She found herself before them all, standing at attention while they eyed her quietly.

"Widow, you are being sent on a long-term undercover mission. Your target is Alexei Shostakov; he's an excellent pilot and is privy to a lot of secrets. Secrets that we want. Your mission is to seduce him and become a part of his life; when we feel like we have got everything we want, you will be instructed to kill him and return here. Do you understand?" Vladimir told her

"Yes Master" she replied instantly, bowing low.

"You will be dropped off at his location tomorrow evening. Dismissed." Anton spoke, she bowed again and made her way to the door.

"Oh Widow" Viper called out, she stopped and turned to face her Masters once again, "Don't get attached. Remember, Love is for Children" Viper informed her coldly.

"Yes Madame" she responded quietly before slipping out of the room.

The next evening, the Widow found herself at a gala held in the home of a General Polanski. The Widow had already made contact with her target. Alexei was a young man around twenty two years of age with dark brown hair and hazel eyes. He was handsome and funny yet courteous as well; in another life the Widow thought that he was the type of man she could love for real. They had been speaking with each other for over an hour and were thoroughly enjoying themselves.

"May I have a dance?" Alexei asked, standing up and holding his hand out to her. The Widow laughed quietly,

"Of course, kind sir" she replied, a smile lighting up her face as she put her hand in his. Gently, he pulled her to her feet and led her onto the dance floor where several other couples were already dancing. He gently placed a hand on her waist while holding her hand in the other; she at the same time put her free hand on his shoulder and together they began to dance. No talking took place as they swirled around the room, their gaze locked onto each other. Her eyes sparkled with joy and laughter as he suddenly spun her around before pulling her close again. They danced the night away and before they knew it, the gala had come to an end and they were being told to leave. Together they laughed and made their way outside.

"It was a pleasure to meet you Natalia, if I'm not being too bold, may I see you again?" he asked as he helped her into a cab. She laughed quietly and replied,

"Tomorrow at noon; meet me in the Imperial garden by the Roses" he bowed his head and spoke with an air of a gentleman,

"Until then my lady" she laughed again,

"Until then my kind sir" the door was shut and the cab carried her off back to the house she was staying at until the next plan of the mission was completed.

"It seems as though you have made quite an impression on him" the driver commented, in the mirror she saw it was one of her instructors. Her face turned cold and hard,

"Don't worry, it's my mission, nothing more"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know the archery scene—I just could not resist. I thought it will be funny when Hawkeye and she meet and she is actually a pretty good shot herself.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

She was there waiting for Alexei in the Imperial Garden, at noon, near the rose bush. Footsteps behind her alerted her to someone's approach, spinning round, she found Alexei standing there with a grin spread across his face and a hand behind his back.

"Good afternoon sir" she greeted him, her emerald eyes dancing as she laid eyes on him

"Good afternoon to you too lovely lady" he replied, his grin getting wider, "I have something for you" with a flourish, he pulled his arm from behind his back and revealed a beautiful white rose. With a bow he handed it over to her; giggling she took it from him and smelt it, a smile lighting up her face as she did so.

"It's beautiful" she breathed, "Thank you"

"You're very welcome" he replied, "Shall we get out of the cold?" he inquired, offering her his arm. Taking it, her smiled widened and she replied,

"Indeed, lead on kind sir"

Alexei led her up the street into a small cozy café. They went in laughing and settled down by a window table. A waitress came over with two menus and smiled at the young couple so obviously in love.

"Just call me over when you are ready to order" she informed them cheerfully before backing away and leaving the two love birds alone once more. They were the only customers in there and so it was not long before they both had a steaming coffee in front them and a small slice of cake to share.

"So fair lady, what would you like to do after this?" he asked her, just as she was about to answer, he shoved a fork load of cake into her mouth. She stared at him for a moment surprised before swallowing, her eyes reflecting the mirth she felt with her; Alexei laughed out loud at the sight of her face.

"I'm sorry but I just could not resist" he said as he tried to get his laughter under control. Using her skills as an assassin, Natalia picked up a small piece of cake and flicked it at him, hitting him right on the nose. Alexei blinked in shock and it was her turned to laugh,

"I'm sorry I just could not resist" she told him, her face a picture of innocence as she used his own words against him. Waggling his finger at her, Alexei wiped his nose with the other, mock glaring at her. His eyes however betrayed him as they twinkled with amusement.

"Come now, let's be reasonable and call it a draw before this gets too far out of hand" he told her, amusement underlining his words. She nodded amicably,

"Very well, where would you like to go next?" she asked, her voice gentle

"I do not know, perhaps to see a movie? I will then, if you are willing, take you to visit my home?" he asked her.

"Yes, I would like that very much" she replied, a small smile playing on her lips as she looked deep into his eyes. Throwing some money onto the table, Alexei got up and offered her his hand; she took it and he helped her up before leading her back outside.

The movie had finished some time ago and Natalia found herself curled up with her target on the large sofa inside his living room later that evening. He had been a perfect gentleman all night and she was beginning to relax into this role. It was rare for her to be sent on a long term undercover mission and even rarer for her target to actually be nice and gentle towards her.

"It's late Natalia, do you wish to go to bed?" he asked her as he brushed her hair out of her face. She raised a delicate eyebrow,

"Is that your way of trying to get me into your bed?" she asked softly, he blushed at words and replied quickly,

"No, no of course not. There's a guest bedroom next to mine you can use" she stared at him from a moment longer, her face showing that she was just teasing him,

"I know what you meant, but yes sleep sounds lovely right now" she slowly got to her feet and waited for him to join her. His flushed cheeks slowly returning to their normal colour, he led her up the stairs and to the guest bedroom. Stopping outside the room, he turned towards her,

"Good Night Natalia" he spoke quietly,

"Good Night Alexei" she replied softly, she kissed him gently on his cheek before opening the door and stepping inside, with one last glance at him, she shut the door with a soft click. Alexei touched his cheek and sighed contently, he knew he had found the one.

One year from the day they met, Natalia and Alexei tied the knot that would bond them together as man and wife. For the first time in her life Natalia was happy and no longer pretending to care for the man known as Alexei Shostakov; she kept her growing feelings hidden from the Masters when they asked for updates. She reflected that day as she laid on the bed next to her husband:

"Do you Alexei Shostakov, take Natalia Kowalski as your lawful wedded wife?" he looked deep into her eyes, a brilliant smile on his face and replied,

"I do"

"And do you Natalia Kowalski, take Alexei Shostakov as your lawful wedded husband?" her eyes shone with joy as she replied,

"I do"

"Very well, by the power invested in me by the holy church, I now pronounce you husband and wife." Turning to Alexei, the priest smiled and continued,

"You may kiss the bride"

They smiled at each other and ignoring the cheers around them, they kissed passionately.

She frowned at what she saw, 'this cannot be true' she thought to herself frantically.

"My love, what's wrong?" asked Alexei as soon as he saw her turn white. She turned towards him,

"Alexei, I'm… I'm pregnant" she stammered. They stared at each other for a moment before Alexei let out a whoop and picked her up and spun her around in the air, laughing all the while. Natalia stared at him not comprehending why he was acting this way,

"You… are happy?" she asked him quietly, "you want a child?" he slowly placed her back on the ground, the laughter dying on his lips as he saw how frightened she was. His face turned serious,

"Yes Nat, I want this child. Do you not?"

Natalia waved her hands desperately in the air, she truly had no idea what she thought of this; it should not even have been possible for her to get pregnant, not after all the experiments she had suffered through by the hands of the Red Room,

"I don't know Al" she whispered, "I'm scared" that was true; although she was more scared about what her Masters at the KGB were going to say and do than actually having the child.

"Hey, hey." He caught her hand in one of his and gently lifted her chin to look at him with the other,

"It's going to be okay. I'll be here for you always, 'till death do us apart' remember?" he chuckled softly.

"Al?" she said quietly, he looked at her, "We're going to have a baby" she continued louder, a smile slowly appearing on her face,

"yes we are Nat, we're going to be family" he replied joyfully as he spun her around again, this time with her laughing light and cheerful along with him.

'Family' she thought. She was going to have a family.

"Come on Nat, almost there!" he shouted encouraging from where he was massaging her back,

"One more push" the nurse assisting with the birth told her.

"PUSH!"

Natalia let out a scream of pain as she pushed with all her might, a cry broke the air as the baby was born into the world. The nurse quickly took the baby into her arms and carried it over towards the table to clean and check for abnormalities. Natalia was breathing hard as she hugged her husband hard,

"Well done my Love, well done" Alexei murmured softly, gently moving her hair from her face and sponging her sweaty forehead with a wet cloth. The Nurse came back with a bundle of cloth in her arms, a wide grin on her face,

"Congratulations, it's a boy" as she placed the delicate new life into the arms of the waiting mother. Natalia took him eagerly and smiled a smile of pure happiness as she gazed upon the little baby; her baby, crying softly in her arms. Alexei wrapped one arm around her shoulders and used the other one to gently caress his son's face,  
"He is so beautiful" he murmured.

"Do you have any idea for a name yet?" the nurse asked, Natalia tore her gaze from her son and looked at her husband, a small smile on her worn out face,  
"Mikhail. His name is Mikhail" Alexei nodded in agreement,

"Welcome to our family little Mikhail" he whispered softly as he bent down and softly kissed his son's head.

"Mikhail" called Natalia as she chased the little three year old around the house to get him to have his bath. The squeals of joy that her son let loose every minute made her laugh along with him.

"Got you!" she said as she picked him up from behind and threw him lightly in the air before catching him gracefully, Mikhail screamed in delight,

"Again. Again" he squealed and laughed even harder as she threw him in the air again; Natalia's own peals of laughter was heard throughout the house,

"Come on my little lamb, it's time for your bath" she said as she carried him to the bathroom,

"No Mama, no bath" Cried the little one, she chuckled softly,

"Well if you are not going to get into the bath yourself, perhaps a visit from the tickle monster will change your mind" she replied as she lowered her hand on to his stomach and began to tickle him until he screamed at her to stop through the torrent of giggles coming out of his mouth,  
"What's that? Will you have your bath now?" she asked mischievously, her hand poised for another attack,

"Yes Mama" the little boy replied dutifully, trying to escape the clutches of the tickle monster, she laughed again before placing him gently in the bath tub filled with warm water. For the next twenty minutes she scrubbed him clean gently. Mikhail splashed around happily; drenching both his mother and floor at the same time. Natalia shook her hair, making the droplets of water splatter around the room.

"Come on then, lets get you dry and into bed; perhaps a story will make an appearance tonight" she told him with a twinkle in her eyes,

"YAY!" squealed Mikhail as he was lifted out of the tub into a waiting towel. Natalia dried him gently before picking him up and carrying him into his room; the boy's room was covered in planes of all shapes and sizes, clearly he had inherited his father's passion for flying.

"Come on mama. Storieee" he squealed as he jumped into his bed, Natalia chuckled and settled down also with a book in her hands,

"Come here than my little lamb" she replied, Mikhail clambered into her lap and leaned back against her,

"Once upon a time…" for the next half an hour, Natalia and her son sat comfortably as she read him his favorite: Dreams of Space. She closed the book when it was finished and gently lifted her son off her and tucked him in, he was well on his way to falling asleep,

"Mama, don't go" he whimpered,

"Don't worry baby, I'm not going anywhere" she whispered as she kissed his forehead and settled down into the chair by the bed. Quietly, she began to sing to him, a lullaby she had made up for him when he was just a few days old and what never failed to put him asleep.

Alexei came home soon after and went upstairs to his son's room; knowing that's exactly where he would find his wife as well as his son. He stood staring at the doorway for a moment, listening and watching his beautiful wife and equally beautiful son. Natalia glanced at him and smiled before continuing to sing to her pride and joy,

"My Love" he whispered as he walked over and kissed the top of her head, she leaned back into him. They both stared at him for several more minutes before making their way out of the room, leaving the door open a crack as to not leave their beloved son in the dark.

"How was your day?" he asked her as they both got ready for bed,

"Good; I managed to get him to eat all his lunch and dinner as well as have a bath" she replied with a chuckle,

"That is no easy task" her husband commented as he got into bed,

"So how was your day?" she asked as she joined him,

"Excellent, I sold one of my blue prints to a manufacturing company and they are going to build a prototype based on the design" he replied excitedly, she laughed and kissed him lightly,  
"You and your planes" she whispered, shaking her head in mock disbelief. He laughed and wrapped her in his arms,

"This is going to be big one day Nat, I can feel it." He said in her ear, she just smiled amused before caressing his cheek,  
"Good night, my kind sir" she said, he smiled too, remembering her nickname for him when they first met,  
"Good night to you too my love, may your dreams be forever sweet" he murmured softly. And together, husband and wife drifted off to sleep.

KILL HIM. She stared in horror at the letter in front of her; she had forgotten that part of the mission, so caught up in the happiness she felt when she was around her family. Scrunching the letter into her hand, she threw it into the fire and closed her eyes; wanting desperately that it was just a dream and she could continue living her life as normal. Sadly that was not to be; another letter was delivered the next day:  
YOU HAVE 24 HOURS. KILL. HIM."

Throwing the second letter into the fire, she ran up the stairs to where her husband and son were playing with a train set and opened the door. Walking in calmly she smiled gently at them both and joined in, determined that she was going to show her husband and son exactly how much she cared about them and -dare she it? -Loved them.

"Mama!" squealed the Mikhail as he threw himself into his mother's arms, she hugged him just as tightly and gestured for Alexei to join them; together they hugged each other tightly and for a long time they remained that way. Finally they broke it off and Mikhail let out a giggle,

"Mama, daddy said he would buy a new plane!" her son told her excitedly, she smiled at him and pretended she was delighted with the news,  
"Why how nice of your daddy. Did you say thank you Mikhail?" the little boy look chastened for a moment before flinging himself onto his father and yelled,

"Fank you daddy" Alexei laughed and began to tickle his son, making him squirm and giggle,

"You're welcome, little pilot" he told his four year old son, grinning. Natalia just sat there with a fake smile on her face and wondered if it would be better off she died with her family than having to live with their deaths.

"Alexei, can I talk to you privately for a minute?" she asked softly, he looked at concerned before looking down at his son,

"Mik, can you stay here and play quietly for a minute?" he asked, the little boy oblivious to the serious tension, merely nodded his head,

"Yes Daddy" he said, hugging his father one last time. Natalia gave her son a smile before standing up and walking towards the door, Alexei followed. As soon as the door shut he turned to her,

"What is wrong my Love?" he asked, moving closer to his beloved wife with concern. Natalia allowed herself to be hugged,

"I have something to tell you Al but before I do, you must promise me that you love me and that nothing will ever change that" she told him, her eyes full of guilt and grief for what is to come.

"What are you talking about?" He whispered in her ears, "You know I love you and Mikhail more than anything in the world. I promise you nothing will ever change that" she nodded against his chest and opened her mouth again,

"There are things that I must tell Al but know that I love you and Mikhail so much, so much" she whispered. she started to shake,

"What's wrong? Please tell me" he asked desperately. Natalia led him to the bed and got him to sit down while she knelt in front of him. Taking a deep breath she opened her mouth,  
"It was not by accident I met you that night Al" she started "My job was to infiltrate your life and kill you when my boss told me to." He let out a gasp and stared at her in horror, she pushed on,

"I had never known what love was or known what it meant to be cherished and cared for before I met you Alexei. At first it was a ploy to gain your trust but that night, our wedding night, I realized how much I truly loved you and then when Mikhail was born, my life was complete. I forgot about the mission and my boss because everything I wanted was right in front of me until yesterday…" she trailed off, looking desperately for something in his face that would tell her everything would be okay,

"You have been lying to me and Mikhail all this time?" he asked her quietly,

"No!" she gasped, at first yes, I freely admit that, but during the last four years my feelings for you became real. I love you and Mikhail so much and my heart bleeds for what I have been ordered to do" so desperate and torn did she sound that Alexei looked at her with tears in his eyes,  
"What orders?" he asked, she sobbed,

"To kill you. I have twenty four hours." He turned as white as a sheet.

"Alexei, I do not want to, please believe me, I'm not going to" she pleaded with him. Alexei cupped her face in his hands,

"Shush, I believe you, my love" he whispered before wrapping his arms around her and cradling her as she cried for the first time in decades.

"Leave Alexei, take Mikhail and leave" she whispered into his chest, he froze,  
"No… not without you" he told her, she pleaded with him with desperate eyes,

"I will hold them off for as long as I can, please Alexei, I cannot be responsible for your death"

"What will happen to you if you do not…" his voice cracked slightly, "do not complete your orders?" she stared at him,  
"I will receive a punishment but I would live. You would not" she deliberately did not go into any detail,

"What kind of punishment?" he asked her further, she stared at him with tortured eyes for a moment before looking at the ground, she whispered quietly,  
"I will be whipped, beaten, burnt, water boarded and every other torture they can devise" he opened his mouth but she continued quickly,

"But it would all be worth it if you lived"

"NO! no I cannot ask you to do that Nat, to go through that for me" he told her, shaking his head.

"Please Alexei; this is the only way to save you. You and Mikhail." She begged him.

"No it is not. You are going to complete your orders My love" he whispered as he hugged her again, she stumbled back as if he had hit her.

"No, Alexei how would that save you? How would that save Mikhail? Think about the life of our son. If you die, he dies" he told him, guilt almost overwhelming her, he walked towards her again,

"Nat, I will be safe, on the other side, away from all the evil in this world. I'll be waiting for you. As for Mikhail, we will hide him and arrange for someone to take him in, he will live and so will you" he told her quietly, Natalia's body wracked with sobs as once again she found herself in his arms,

"I can't" she sobbed, "not you, never you"

"Please Nat. let me do this for you and you do this for me, you will make it painless for me unlike your bosses if they find out you did not carry out your orders" he was practically begging her to end it.

"I… I don't know if I will be able to do it." She told him,

"Shush, its okay, I'll help you" he whispered. Another sob escaped her as he spoke.

The entire day was spent as a family, they informed Mikhail that they were going to play a special game of hide and seek and the special rule was that he was not allowed to make a sound or come out until his mommy's friend Eli came to fetch him. Mikhail was extremely excited and raced off immediately to find the best hiding place her could. Natalia used her skill as an assassin to erase his track and to make sure he was hiding in the best possible place he could. She met her husband back in their room and nodded. It was time.

"Remember my love, do not blame yourself for my death, this is my choice." She nodded numbly, still shocked at what she as about to do,  
"Natalia" he said sharply, she looked up immediately, continuing in a gentle tone, "Don't blame yourself"

"Yes my love." She answered, he grinned sadly at her,

"I'll be waiting for you on the other side, we will be together again, I promise you" she kissed her passionately one last time,

"I love you" she whispered

"I love you too my fair lady" he whispered back and smiled, "Till death do us part, remember?" she had to smile at that,

"Yes, till death do us part… and beyond" it was his turn to smile,

"And beyond" he whispered softly to himself before nodding at her,

"Do it my love" as he caressed her cheek one last time. Natalia grabbed his neck gently with one hand and place her other behind him, with one last kiss, she swiftly broke his neck and gently lowered his lifeless body onto the ground. She knelt beside him and cried to herself while holding his hand; she stayed that way for a full hour before getting back up onto her feet, her face blank and cold once more: the Black Widow was back.

She took out the mobile phone she was given to contact her mission handler when the deed was done,

"He's dead" she told him

"Good. We will be at the house in five minutes. Meet us outside" he cut her off. With one last look at her fallen lover she made her way outside and waited for her handler to come. Five minutes later two vans appeared in her driveway and the doors opened to allow a dozen men in body armor to step out into the biting winter evening.

"Widow" her handler greeted her

"Sir" she replied with a slight bow

"Where's the child?" he asked her, she faltered,

"Why? What do you want with my child?" she asked. She received a stunning blow to the face and she staggered back,  
"Do NOT challenge me Widow, do you understand?" he snarled at her, recovering herself quickly, she nodded but did not say anything.

"Where's the child?" he demanded again, she remained silent, she was not going to allow them to touch her baby, even if she died in the attempt. Getting that she was not going to tell him, the handler ordered his men to search the house. Half an hour later there came a scream of fear as Mikhail was dragged from the house by two men.

"Mikhail" Natalia shouted and attempted to go to him but found herself restrained by four men, two more covered her with their weapons.

"Mikhail, don't be scared baby, I'm here. Shush, I'm here" she tried to comfort her little one but the traumatized child was far beyond being comforted by words and began to scream his lungs out. One of the guards wacked him over the head to shut him up,  
"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" screamed the Widow as she fought to free herself desperately.

The handler chuckled at her display of affection towards her child,

"Emotions are a weakness, Widow. They need to be eliminated." He told her coldly. He aimed his gun at the child's head; he stared at her with a sadistic gleam in his eyes. Realizing what he was about to do,

"NO!" Natalia screamed as she fought to free herself even harder all the while begging her handler not to kill her son,  
"Please Sir, no, I beg you. Don't do this. Don't do this, please!" she sobbed, unable to look at her child.

"It is your fault Widow, you created him, you killed him" steadying his aim, he ordered his guards to make sure she was watching,

"Watch Widow, as young Mikhail here pays the price for your mistakes" her last scream tore from her throat at the same time as her handler pulled the trigger. She cried her heart out as she watched her four year old son thump to the ground, a dark puddle of blood already forming underneath him.

"Chuck his body along with the targets in the river" he ordered several of his men, all whom hurried to obey, "And take the Widow to the second van, knock her out if you have to" he told the guards holding her with a dismissive wave of his hand. She had stopped fighting as all the strength left her; 'Alexei's sacrifice was all for nothing' she thought sadly as she was led into the van; the doors slamming shut behind her.

She fell to her knees, her head almost touching the floor as soon as the guards released her before the Masters; the life within her had gone, it died when she was forced to murder the only man she had ever loved; the only happiness she had ever known.

"I warned you Widow" Madame Rozalina told her coldly, still the Widow she not look up.

"You may have completed the mission but your failure when it came to the child was shocking to say the least. I have told you before Widow and I will tell you again:

Love is for children" she snarled at the kneeling woman. Finally the Widow looked up and the Masters saw her dead eyes and realized that no matter what torture they concocted, the Widow would not care since she was already suffering the ultimate pain one could: the loss of a loved one. They ignored the Widow as they whispered amongst them, trying to determine what her punishment would be, they broke it off suddenly and Vladimir spoke,

"We have decided Widow that we will be taking away the problem that causes you so much grief and suffering" he paused, a evil smile playing across his face, "you will be having an operation Widow and you will be awake for the entire procedure" turning to a couple of guards,  
"Take her down to medical, tell the doctors that her womb is to be taken out and she is not to be put to sleep, understood?" the guards grabbed her arms and dragged her to her feet,  
"Yes Sir" they replied as they forced her out the door.

"The Masters have ordered you to take out her womb" the guards said, throwing the Widow onto the ground, "she is to be awake for the entire procedure" they warned before backing out the room. Two orderlies stepped forward and grabbed her before tying her down onto the bed,

"Let's begin" the doctor called to his fellow doctors and nurses as he approached her. They attached a blood bag into her arm along with a drip before getting to work. The Widow gritted her teeth hard as they began to cut her open and soon began to writhe as much as she could under her restraints as the pain began to get to her. Hours passed by before it was done, she gasped as the coldness from the needle touched her skin as they stitched her back up; finally it was done and she was released from her bonds as her breathing slowed down again to normal levels. The doctor appeared in her vision,

"Never again will you bear children Widow" he told her with an unreadable expression. She looked at him, her eyes full of pain and sorrow before closing them and drifting off to sleep, the strain on her mind and body becoming too much for her to bear.

When she awoke she found herself strapped into the mind wiping machine,

"Relax Widow" a voice told her from behind, "We're here to help you"

"What are you doing to me?" she asked her voice frightened and quiet. The Woman came round to face her,  
"Your feelings are hindering your work Widow, we are simply removing the grief and sorrow you feel over the death of the child and Alexei Shostakov" she replied smiling sadly at the restrained woman. The Widow noticed how no one ever said her child or her husband.  
"Just relax and it will all be over soon" the woman told her before stepping back out of her line of vision and going over to a monitor,

"Start it" she ordered her helper. The Widow threw her head back and screamed as once more her mind was invaded, she felt as though her mind was being torn apart from the inside. It would have worked, the programme would have worked if the Widow was not so dead set against it, she fought back with everything she had and by the end, her emotions were still her own; nothing had changed. She managed to fool the monitor into thinking it was successful and so when the Widow was released she kept it all buried deep down inside her, no one could see it and no one knew that that grief and sorrow was slowly changing into anger and hatred. Soon a fire burned deep within her and she knew that one day, the Masters were going to pay and that they were going to die by her hands when that day finally did arrived.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors Note: Beginning of this Chapter takes place in 1990- one year before the collapse of the Soviet Union.
> 
> Natalia is now sixty two years old but looks twenty one.

Chapter Seventeen

She stood tall and emotionless before the Masters. It had been three years since the day she had lost everything she held dear and the Widow now only held anger and hatred within her; gone was the kindness and happiness she had shown with her family, that part of her had died when her husband and son was taken from her. She had gone back to serving the Masters of the KGB with the same unquestioning obedience yet the loyalty she once had for them was gone.

"This mission is vital to the KGB's continued existence Widow, make sure you do not fail" Madame Viper told her quietly, the Widow bowed her head,

"Yes Madame" she responded coldly

"Your secondary target is a man named Maxim Drakov; he is not to be harmed unless as a last resort, is that understood?" Master Anton spoke next; once again the Widow bowed and responded with the automatic 'yes Master'

"Your primary target Widow, is his daughter Helena Drakov. She is to be your means of persuasion to help make Maxim more co-operative with us. Kill her once you have been insured of his co-operation as a message for the future" Master Dmitry spoke casually, as though Helena's life held no meaning.

"Yes Master" she responded for the third time,

"You're dismissed. Leave immediately" Master Vladimir told her with a wave of his hand. The Widow bowed low and left the room quickly before her hatred of them all came bubbling to the surface.

Packing quickly, the Widow shoved her plenty of weapons and ammo into her bag before adding several pairs of jeans and a couple of tops before zipping it up and placing in on her desk. She moved quickly to her bathroom and took a quick shower before drying herself and getting changed in to her catsuit and placing even more weapons onto her body. Looking round the sparse room one last time to make sure she had not missed anything she would need, the Widow picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder before striding out the door towards the waiting vehicle that would take her to the private airstrip five miles from here.

Stepping into the airplane, the Widow found three guards already there waiting for her. Rolling her eyes slightly, she made her way to the cockpit and sat down in the pilots' chair; the Masters obviously still did not trust her, even after three years of nothing but obedience. They were wise.

"Are we waiting on anyone else?" she asked one of the guards impatiently as he sat down next to her; the man chuckled softly and responded,

"No Widow, all guards- sorry passengers are on board" he emphasized the word with a roll of his eyes, showing he too thought three guards were a touch too much. It was not like they were going to pose a threat to her if she ever decided to escape. The Widow allowed a small smile to appear on her face for a second before the blank façade was back on.

"Good. Then let's fly" and with that, she began to flick numerous switches and slowly the plane began to move forwards.

The plane touched down eleven hours later in England; Drakov had moved there in a bid to escape the KGB. The Widow unbuckled her seatbelt and walked out of the cockpit and out the plane without a glance as the supposed guards. She strode towards the waiting car and got into the drivers seat and sat waiting until the guards joined her. They were one hour into their journey when she broke the silence,

"When we get to the safe house; you all will stay there and allow me to complete my mission. Understood?" she asked, her tone suggesting that it would be wise to obey and not question her. There were several grunts as the guards agreed before silence resumed. They came to the said safe house two hours later and the Widow dropped them off before continuing on to towards the targets house, eager to get this mission over and done with.

She easily slipped passed the security systems that Drakov had seen fit to set up around his home before entering the house undetected via a window. The Drakov family were quite wealthy, it was clear to see by the furniture and sheer size of the home. The Widow stalked down the halls silently, seeking her prey and soon was rewarded for her efforts. In a room on the second floor, obviously the daughter's room was a little girl around six years of age squealing was joy as she was chased round the room by a handsome middle aged man, obviously her father: Maxim Drakov. Slipping silently inside the room, unnoticed by the occupants, she took her gun out of the holster and aimed it at the little girl.

"Stand still" she ordered them quietly. The man and his daughter spun round at her voice and both gasped in fear as they came face to face with a barrel of a gun. Immediately Maxim raised his hands to gesture surrender while Helena stood still, rooted to the spot by fear.

"What do you want?" he asked the intruder, his voice calm and even. The Widow ignored him and gestured with the gun to his daughter,  
"You, Helena is it not?" she paused waiting for a response, the little girl nodded slightly, "Come here" she continued, her tone leaving no room for an argument. Helena looked up at her father fearfully,

"Daddy, I don't wanna go" she whimpered fearfully, the Widow cocked the gun and took aim again, this time at her father,

"Get her now or your father dies" she growled. The little girl stood there petrified as tears slid down her cheeks,

"Go Helena" her father told her softly, his eyes betraying his anguish at the thought of a soulless murderer having their hands on his beloved daughter. Helena walked forwards reluctantly until the Widow leaned forwards and grabbed her roughly before spinning her around, her arm around the girl's neck and her gun pressed to the side of her head.

"Don't shoot her" Maxim pleaded, the Widow rolled her eyes slightly,  
"I won't… yet." She replied, her voice cold and hard

"What do you want?" he asked again, his eyes never leaving his daughters face.

"I don't want anything" the Widow said, "However the KGB Masters do." If his face was pale before, it was nothing compared to how it looked now,

"You… you work for the KGB?" he stammered, the Widow merely nodded, her face betraying no emotions.

"How did they find me? What do they want?" he asked, his voice shaking in fear.

"It was easy for them to track you down, you kept your surname for God's sake; that was a beacon for them" the Widow informed him, her usual calm exterior broke for a moment and she allowed her irritation to show through before quickly walling it back up again. Maxim looked shocked at her outburst but wisely chose to say nothing.

"They want what they have always wanted Maxim Drakov. They want your co-operation" Maxim could not help himself, he chuckled loudly,

"You say co-operation but you really mean servitude don't you? He asked her.

"Its one and the same thing with them, is it not?" she replied with a small smile; he nodded his head in agreement.

"Nevertheless, I will not co-operate with them; I will die first" he told her.

"I know" she said softly, he looked at her shocked again, "but will you allow your daughter to die instead?" she pressed the gun slightly harder into the girls head, making her whimper in fear, her big blue eyes pleading with her father.

"You wouldn't" he gasped, his eyes widening in fear. The Widow looked at him with cold eyes for a long time before suddenly asking,

"How old is she?" Maxim blinked at her, "Your daughter" she clarified.

"She's five. Why do you ask?" he answered, still slightly dazed with the bizarre turn this conversation had taken. The Widow apparently did not hear him as she stared down at the little girl, still pressed against her,

"Five" she muttered to herself, the forbidden memories of Mikhail suddenly assailing her. Maxim looked fearfully at this apparent insane assassin, her head shot up suddenly. Her eyes wide, she replaced the gun back into its holster and shoved the girl lightly forwards towards him,

"You're right, I would not" she told him quietly. Maxim hugged his daughter tightly while Helena cried softly in his arms.

"You are disobeying your orders, why?" he asked her, suddenly angry. This time it was the Widow, who put her hands up in a gesture of surrender,

"Because she reminds me of what I lost." she replied softly. The Widow disappeared and Natalia stood in her place, a tired, grieving mother.

"What happened?" he asked her quietly. Natalia's eyes glazed over as she remembered that night, Maxim saw her attention waver and took a step towards her. Abruptly, she shook her head and spoke,

"We need to go. Now"

He looked at her bewildered,

"Go? Go where? And why should I trust you, you almost killed my daughter!" he replied frantically. She eyed him with a chillingly gaze,

"The KGB is going to be out for blood, specifically ours; they will not stop until we are all dead. I'm not saying you should trust me, I agree that would be stupid, but you need my help if you have even a chance of escaping them" she said all of this while ripping clothes out of Helena's wardrobe and tossing them on the bed. Whirling round she found that he was still standing, staring at her with a strange expression on his face,

"Well?" she demanded, "MOVE!" he suddenly burst into action and ran out the room before returning a minute later with a couple of bags. Tossing one to her, he ran back out the room to pack some of his own clothes. Natalia started to shove the mountain of clothes on Helena's bed into her bag before stopping suddenly and turning to the frightened little girl still standing in the middle of the room,  
"Hey, I'm sorry for upsetting you" she began gently, "is there anything particular you want to take with you? A special toy or something?" Helena gazed at her silently for a moment before walking slowly towards her play table and picking up a teddy bear with a ribbon around on of his ears. Natalia nodded once before zipping up the bag and slinging it over her shoulder. Maxim walked in a bag in each hand; he nodded to her, signalling that they were ready to go.

"You are going to have to leave the name Drakov behind you now" she told him quietly as they cruised down the street. He sighed,  
"I know. Luckily I know a guy who will be able to set me up with fake passports" she glanced at him before quickly returning her gaze onto the road,  
"We need to make one stop first" this time he glanced at her, nodding his head, he understood what she was going to do. Parking the car she got out,

"Wait here and do not make a sound" she whispered before walking towards the safe house. Opening the door, she was greeted by three guns. Raising an eyebrow, unimpressed, she walked further into the room and shut the door behind her.

"Has the mission been completed?" one asked her, setting the gun back down on the table besides him. The Widow eyed them all coldly before speaking,  
"There's been a change of plan" before any of them could react, she had both guns in her hands and had fired three times; all three guards laid dead at her feet with a bullet between the eyes. Walking forwards, she picked up a pen and a piece of paper and wrote one word:

DEAD.

She drew a small Black Widow spider under the message and left it on one of the guards' bodies before picking up their guns and walking out of the house, back to the car.

"That should buy us some time at least" she told him, as soon as she got back behind the wheel. Maxim glanced at her nervously,

"You killed them" he stated. She nodded. "How can you be so calm after taking someone's life?" she sighed,

"I have been killing and murdering my whole life, it doesn't bother me much really anymore" silence fell as the two adults relaxed under the sound of the peaceful breathing coming from the sleeping child in the back.

"You said that she reminds you of something you lost. What did you mean?" he asked her quietly. Natalia visibly tensed and kept her gaze firmly in front of her. She was quiet for so long that Maxim was afraid she was not going to answer him, finally however she did,

"Eight years ago, the KGB Masters sent me on a long undercover mission, to infiltrate a young brilliant pilot's life." She stopped as she reflected,

"What happened?" he asked her gently. She looked at him and gave him a sad smile,

"I made a mistake." She paused for a moment before continuing, "I did the one thing that I should have known better to do" he gave her a questioning look,

"I fell in love" he blinked, shocked. Out of everything he imagined her saying that was not one of them. She chuckled at his reaction,

"Yes I know, an assassin, born and made in blood and fire, in love? But that was not the worse thing. No not by far…" she trailed off, lost in thought. Silence remained for several minutes before she spoke again,

"We had a child, a son. Three years ago they murdered my son and forced me to kill my husband. " Maxim sat there with a stricken look on his face, not saying anything. Because really? What can you say to something like that?

They continued to drive throughout the rest of the night and throughout the next day, only stopping for toilet breaks and to get some food.

"I have taken you as far as I can" Natalia said, sounding somewhat regretful, "I need to start laying a different trail for the KGB to find, to lead them off your scent before disappearing myself" as she parked the car by the side of the road. Maxim looked at her.

"Thank you. You risked and still are risking your life for us so thank you" she smiled at him,

"Your Welcome and take care. Remember; keep moving for the next two months before settling down anywhere and keep your heads down" she advised him. He nodded,

"What are you going to do now?" he asked her, she sighed, the only thing she knew how to do was killing, and there were not many legal choices for someone like that.

"I don't know, I'll think of something" she replied, "Now go" she ordered, her face deceptively blank.

"Good bye" he told her before shutting the passenger door and getting his bags from the boot before meeting his daughter on the pavement. Natalia did not wait another moment, as soon as the boot slammed shut again, she was off. Drakov and his daughter stood there, waving at the retreating car before walking in the opposite direction.

Eight years had passed. Natalia had turned from being the KGB's top assassin to a world widely recognized accomplished contract assassin. The best thing about it was that although she had been at it for eight years, no one knew what she looked like or even when it was her when she committed the murders. Her clients were always the richest crime lords and drug lords in the towns she visited although she would occasionally get a jealous politician or family member who would hire her to take out the competition. She had slipped back into the persona known as the Black Widow and so didn't care who she used her skills for, or on. It was a means to survive and that is what she did, she survived, even if everyone else died. But truth to be told she was getting tired. Seventy years she had lived, sixty five of them she had killed and she was sick of it. She had killed over three hundred in the last eight years, granted most of them were people the world was better off without but still, she was just so god damn tired. The Widow had spent the last three years trying to find someone she deemed good enough to end her; and she was yet to find that person. The Widow had set up a lot of different accounts, safe houses and spy rings through out the world. They said it paid to be paranoid and the Widow was as paranoid as they came; she never let anyone in and she made sure she was never indebted to anyone, instead they were always indebted to her.

Cold. Ruthless. Tired. It was horrifying combination; one that rightfully earned her a reputation of the worst kind; yet it also made her dangerous.

SHIELD HEADQUARTERS…

"Agent Barton, please report to Director Fury's office immediately" the voice over the speakers announced. Agent Clint Barton sighed from where he was shooting arrows with his favourite bow and lovingly set it down on the table, planning to get straight back to his practice as soon as his boss allowed him to. Making his way over to Fury's office, he wracked his brain trying to figure out exactly what he had done during the last week that would send him to Fury. Coming up with nothing, he shrugged his shoulders and walked on, dismissing the problem knowing he would find out the reason soon enough. Knocking politely on the door, he waited until the voice within shouted for him to come in. He opened the door and walked in, stopping before the desk, standing with his hands behind his back and feet a part.

"At ease Agent Barton, you are not in trouble" Fury told him from where he sat behind his desk, leaning back slightly. Barton nodded and relaxed his stance so that his arms now dangled at his side,

"Have a seat Barton" Fury said, gesturing to one of the two chairs in front of him.

"Thank you Sir" Barton replied, taking one of the chairs and leaning back into it with a small smile on his face,

"You have a mission for me Sir?" he asked, getting straight to the point. Fury nodded and handed him a folder,

"Yes. The Council has authorised the kill shot on the infamous assassin known only as the Black Widow" Barton glanced up at him sharply,

"You are kidding Sir?" he asked, slightly taken aback by the depth of the mission. He had no problem taking out targets who deserved death but trying to find a master assassin, who suddenly popped up on their radar five years ago after she killed one of their targets, and who specialized in disappearing; was out of his comfort zone, if out of his depth. Fury sighed,

"No Barton, I'm not. You are to track her down and kill her. However, when you have found her, contact me; I wish to ask her a few questions first." Barton looked at him quizzically,

"We have no idea who she is Barton, not an actual name, age, hell we don't even know what she looks like! I would like to know who she is before she dies" Fury answered. Barton nodded,

"When's my deadline?"

"You don't have one. Take your time Barton" Fury told him with a final nod.

"Yes Sir" he replied as he stood up and left the room. Fury returned his gaze out of the window and sighed.

He was in England surprisingly and he had been tracking who he hoped was the Black Widow for the past three months. Granted it took a month to find even a hint of her trail and then another to actually catch up to her. This last month, he had had to work hard to keep her in his sights since she had a habit of disappearing for days on end before popping back up again. He did not think she knew that he was following her however he did not take the risk of getting too close therefore all he knew about her was that she had long flaming, red hair and a deadly aim. Currently the Black Widow was walking silently down the street after leaving her third safe house in the last week; she knew she was being watched, she had since the whole cat and mouse game had began. The assailant was good, she gave him that, better than the other wannabe assassins that had come after her and she finally felt as though she had found a worthy opponent to end her life. She led him down an ally and stopped when she had gone in far enough as to avoid prying eyes from the mouth of the ally way.

"I know you are there" she spoke softly, no hint of her Russian background was noticeable, as she turned round and stared up at the roof opposite; she could clearly make out the man crouching there with, she smiled inwardly, a bow and arrow. Barton was surprised to say the least, he quickly turned his communicator on as to be able to talk with Fury,  
"Barton?" Fury's voice came into his ears,  
"Yeah"

"What's happening?"

"I've been compromised; she knows I've been following her" he whispered,

"Do you need extraction or back up?"

"Negative. Hold for the moment, I want to talk to her"

"Understood" Fury kept his communicator on though, wanting to know what was happening.

"How long have you known I was here? He asked, jumping lightly to the ground a couple of meters away, the bow and arrow still aimed at the assassin.

"Three months" came the reply, that stopped him,

"Wait I only started following you personally a month ago" he complained, she shrugged her shoulders slightly,  
"You have been trying to track me for three though" Barton shook his head, impressed.

"You know why I am here?" he asked her, his voice deathly serious. In answer, the Black Widow slowly raised her hands in the universal sign of surrender,

"Yes."

"Hold on, a guy comes after you with a bow and arrow and you're not going to fight?" he asked her in disbelief, he heard Fury snort in disbelief in his ear as well,

"Yes" she replied simply

"Not going to beg or plead for your life?" he was toying with her, trying to get a reaction from her. She was too well versed in this life to beg for something as meaningless as her life though,  
"No." she shook her head once before staring at him straight in the eye,

"Kill me"

"What?" he asked her in shock

"Kill. Me." She repeated slowly, her face still obscured in the shadows.  
"Why would you want me to kill you?" he asked, letting Fury know the changes in the situation. Fury swore. The Black Widow stepped into the light and Barton gasped. The woman was breathtakingly beautiful. Her long red hair cascaded down her back, her features were sharp yet soft at the same time and her eyes the colour of emeralds. There were two other things he noticed instantly, one: she was not particularly tall, roughly 5'6. Two: she looked so young. She studied him for a moment and then sighed; she allowed the tiredness that she had been feeling over the last three years to come to the surface.

"Because I'm tired" she said. She stared at him, her eyes silently pleaded with him to end it.

There was silence for a minute as they stared at each other. Fury suddenly spoke in his ear,

"It's your call Barton" Barton was shocked at that but kept it off his face, 'Fury's letting me decide her fate, is he crazy!?' he thought to himself, his eyes never leaving the Widow.

"Come with me" he suddenly told her. She looked at him as though couldn't believe what she had heard before her blank façade was back,  
"Excuse me?" she asked

"You heard me, come with me" he repeated

"Where?" she asked

"SHIELD" she chuckled lightly at that,

"Not only is that a bad idea but I also don't think your boss will be on board with that idea either. No, it will save everyone's time if you just put a bullet-or arrow" she smirked slightly, "in me right now" Barton listened to Fury is in ear, surprisingly he seemed to actually be considering it,  
"Bring her in, I want to meet her. Tell her that if she co-operates she will not be harmed" Barton nodded slightly to himself,  
"My Boss agrees with me, he said to bring you in and to tell you that if you co-operate, you will not be harmed." The Widow raised a delicate eyebrow,  
"I'm not surprised Director Fury agrees; although I'm assuming this 'co-operation' means working and obeying his orders?" Barton was not surprised that she knew who his boss was,

"It is different way to live Widow, sure you get orders however you do have the choice to turn them down" she gave him a look of disbelief,  
"A subordinate is meant to obey all orders without question, that's what being a subordinate is." She paused for second before adding as an after thought, "How do I know what you are saying is true?" Barton shook his head at her twisted logic,

"A boss looks after his people in the same way as they protect and obey him, Fury gives us all a chance when it comes to the dangerous missions, no one is forced to complete a mission that is marked at a certain level of danger. As for how can you know what I'm saying is true? Ask yourself, what reason do I have for lying to you? If I wanted you dead, you would be"

She was quiet for a long while before she looked up again,

"Very well, I will go with you to meet this Director Fury." She took a step forwards. He stopped her apologetically,

"I'm sorry but I can't trust you. Yet. I need you to strip" he blushed as she raised an eyebrow,  
"I mean…" she held up her hand,  
"I know what you meant Agent Barton" she said, her face showing none of the amusement she was feeling inside as his blush deepened. Slowly and carefully she took the guns from their holsters and ejected the magazine before placing them on the floor, her knife collection followed, roughly twenty knives had been hidden around her body. Her smoke disks and Widow Bites joined the growing pile as well as the extra ammo and her small thin rope. Stepping back again away from the weapons, her hands back up in the air, she gazed at the archer. Barton for his part looked shocked at the amount of weapons that she had.

"Well… er thanks" he said as he quickly replaced the arrow and bow back into his quiver before picking up the pile of weapons.

"Do you wish for me to be handcuffed?" the Widow asked, "I know you and the whole of SHIELD do not trust me, I will not take offence if you do want me restrained in that way." Barton thought about it for a moment before shaking his head,

"No I don't think handcuffs are necessary, however I do require a promise that you will not harm or kill an agent of SHIELD unless you are provoked"

"Very well, I promise not to harm or kill an agent of SHIELD unless I'm provoked. Satisfied?" she responded, Barton nodded seriously,

"Yes" she walked towards him and they began to walk side by side to the entrance to the ally way. Barton stopped, forcing her to do so as well. She raised an eyebrow as he grinned,

"I forgot to say it when you accepted my offer" he paused waiting to see her reaction, receiving none, his grin got wider,

"Welcome to SHIELD"


	18. Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

"Mission successful?" asked the pilot as Agent Barton walked onto the Quinjet, he had not been made aware of the changes in the plan.

"In a manner of speaking" Barton replied with a grin on his face,

"What do you-"the pilot stopped as he saw the infamous Black Widow walking up the ramp behind the Agent. He turned pale as the Widow fixed him with a cold stare before standing next to Barton,

"Don't worry Brian, the Widow is harmless." He frowned for a moment, "well harmless unless you provoke her"

"Sir, she can't be trusted, she's The Black Widow!" Brian gasped at Barton, obviously unnerved by her presence. Barton's face hardened,

"I know who she is Brian," he replied coolly, "The Widow gave herself up willingly and has promised not to harm any Agents of SHIELD unless provoked. Now, I suggest you get this damn plane in the air and take us home" he glared at the pilot. Brian instantly turned his attention back onto this controls and began to flick switches at deceptively random intervals. Barton looked at the Widow,

"You sit there" he told her, waving a hand towards a seat situated the furthest away from the pilots chair. The Widow obediently moved towards said chair and sat down gracefully, her face blank as paper. Barton took the seat opposite her and settled down, content with keeping an eye on his charge.

A group of eight heavily armed men were waiting for them as they exited the Quinjet; the Widow raised a delicate eyebrow at Barton as she walked down beside him. The men immediately raised their weapons and aimed them at her head. If the Widow was offended or worried about the guns she didn't show it.

"What do you think you are doing?" Barton demanded angrily of the leading armed agent.

"Agent Barton, that woman is a level ten threat; your orders were to terminate with extreme prejudice. Seeing that you failed your task, I will be taking it upon myself to correct your mistake" the man replied, his tone arrogant. He cocked his gun and his men followed suit, beside him, Barton felt the Widow tense as she readied herself for a fight.

"My orders were changed. Director Fury wants to see her immediately. Therefore weapons away now!" He shouted at them, beyond angry. The man hesitated for a moment before smirking,  
"You expect us to believe that? Fury would never agree to meet that piece of trash. Now move out the way or you will be shot as a traitor" he warned, still arrogant and believing he was right. The other members of the squad eyed each other warily before lowering their weapons; they knew that Barton would not make up something like this. Barton stared at him for a minute with narrowed eyes,

"You pull the trigger and you're a dead man walking Winters" he snarled. The Man, Winters, laughed loudly before pulling the trigger. The Widow reacted with impossible speed and spun out of the way before launching herself forward towards the man who threatened her. Disarming him quickly, she placed one arm around his neck and held him in front of her as a body shield before using her free hand to take his pistol from its holster and placing the barrel to his head. Everyone froze in disbelief as Winters was taken down within three seconds.

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" a voice demanded suddenly. Everyone looked round and saw a furious looking Agent wearing a suit that belonged in the film men in black storming towards them. The Widow narrowed her eyes as he approached, her grip on her captive or the gun wavering. The other men in the squad looked at the superior agent with sheepish expressions while Barton glared at his handler although he glanced occasionally at the threatened Widow. He knew that the situation needed to be diffused now before any bloodshed occurred. When no one answered him, the agent asked again, this time his voice deadly quiet,

"I said, what. Is. Going. On. Here?"

"I was going to kill the little bitch" Winters spat from where he was being held,

"I was going to complete the orders Barton failed to do" he gasped suddenly and began to claw at the arm around his neck as the Widow tightened her hold.

"WIDOW!" Barton spoke worried, she turned to face him, her face a picture of cold fury, "Stop, you do not want to kill him" he continued, praying silently that he was right. The Widow stared at him for a few tense moments before loosening her hold again but not releasing him completely. Winters took a couple of deep breaths as he filled his starved lungs with oxygen. Coulson stared at the man before speaking, ignoring the Widow and Barton for the moment,

"I believe that one, no such orders were given to you Agent Winters, and two, the kill orders have been put on hold since Director Fury wishes to see her" he told the man coldly. Winters looked at him with wide eyes as he realized that he had severely misinterpreted the situation and may potentially lose his life because of it.

Everyone stood still after that revelation. The squad was looking guilty about their actions and had taken a sudden interest in the floor, while Barton wore a smug, satisfied smile as Coulson backed up his earlier claims to defend the Widow from getting shot. Winters was just looking rather pale and resigned as he stared at Coulson, hoping he would get him out of this potentially life threatening situation. The Widow had not moved so much as a muscle since she had loosened her hold on the man idiotic enough to insult her. She glared at them all with an icy expression on her face, and they all knew she was very close to murdering the man she had in her grasp.

"Widow" snapped Coulson. The Widow shifted her gaze onto the superior agent, her features betraying nothing.

"Release him" he commanded calmly. She flinched slightly as she fought the urge to instantly obey. She succeeded and did not let go of Winters. Coulson's hard expression softened slightly,

"I know you have no reason to trust us right now Widow, especially after you have just been attacked without provocation. But please, it will give you a chance to gain some trust from us if you willingly release him" he told her quietly. The Widow did not move or say anything for a few minutes, instead she studied the man closely with a calculating eye as she checked to see whether he was lying to her or not. Finally deciding that this man was telling the truth, the Widow released her captive before bending down and placing the gun on the ground near Barton's' feet. She stood up slowly and raised her hands in the air, signifying that she wanted no more trouble. Coulson nodded his head,

"Follow me Widow, Barton" he said as he turned and walked away. The Widow glanced at Barton who nodded encouragingly at her before following the man towards the exit.

Coulson led her through the long corridors of SHIELD's main headquarters, the Triskelion. She kept her face carefully devoid of all emotion and did not even glare at the other agents who walked by. Beside her, Barton watched her closely, fully aware that she had every reason to turn on them after they had broken their promise to her that she would not be harmed. Ten minutes later, Coulson stopped outside a door with a sign nailed to it stating,

Director Fury

The Widow glanced at Coulson as he knocked on the door twice. A voice from within called for them to enter and Coulson immediately opened the door and walked in; after a moments hesitation, the Widow followed with Barton taking up the rear. The office was spacious and light with only a desk, two chairs and a couple of sofas dotted around the room. Director Fury was waiting for them; he was currently sitting behind his desk, leaning his elbows on the table and resting his chin in his hands as he watched them approach. Coulson looked nervously at his boss before stepping to the side and allowing Fury a clear view of the walking target. The Widow stood straight and still as she faced off with Fury, her gaze never wavering. Barton had his serious agent face on and was standing almost at attention. No one spoke for several minutes as they studied each other. Finally Fury spoke,

"You're late, why the delay?" he asked Coulson, turning his attention to his third in command. Coulson replied,

"Agent Winters had gathered a squad of armed men and was waiting for the Quinjet to arrive; he then attempted to kill the Widow after convincing himself that he was obeying orders." Fury raised an eyebrow at him,

"Deal with him Coulson" he ordered simply. Coulson nodded his head once before moving silently back out of the room, leaving the Widow and Hawkeye to find for themselves.

The Widow had been staring at the man since she first entered the room. The eye patch and leather coat, she assumed would be intimidating for anyone who had not gone through the same training she had. She knew a lot about the man called Nick Fury; she had done her research before her failed assassination attempt fifteen years ago.

"it is good to meet you in the flesh Widow" he finally said as he turned his one eye on to her.

"Likewise" she replied.

"I want answers Widow" Fury told her, "I want you to give me a reason not to shoot you in the head right this minute" the Widow cocked her head to the side, her eyes narrowing,

"I told you in that ally, I do not care whether you put a bullet in my brain." This time Fury narrowed his eye; suddenly a gun appeared in his hand and was aimed straight at her head. The Widow did not even flinch; instead she stared back at him with cold eyes. Fury did not show it but he was impressed, not many people could keep that reaction at gun point,

"Let me ask you something Widow. Why are you so willingly to die?" silence greeted him,

"Very well, if death is your wish, then I will grant it to you" he snapped as he cocked the trigger.

"I deserve it" she replied quietly, almost too quietly for Fury and Barton to hear. Fury frowned heavily and placed the gun on the desk. Glancing at Barton, he spoke,

"You're dismissed Barton" Barton opened his mouth to protest but Fury beat him to it,  
"I want to talk to the Widow alone" Barton nodded stiffly and turned on his heel and back out into the corridor.

The Widow stood stiffly under the scrutinizing gaze of Director Fury,

"Sit" he ordered, she obeyed and settled down on the edge of the offered chair.

"I'm not going to deny that you do probably deserve to die Widow" she looked down at the floor,

"However I also believe that you deserve a second chance, to try and make up for your mistakes" he told her cautiously. The Widow focused her gaze on him, a light entering her eyes.

"That is, only if you decide to take it" he warned her. Her face composed and blank she asked,  
"What must I do to prove that I am deserving of this second chance?" Fury looked at her silently for a moment before responding,  
"Firstly, I want answers." She nodded her head, he continued, "Secondly, I want you to promise that you will obey my orders, at least until I know I can trust you" the Widow nodded again, apparently agreeing with his terms.

"Very well, lets begin" Fury told her.

"What's your name?" he asked her. They had moved to one of the interrogation rooms as to be able to record the conversation.

"Black Widow" she replied automatically, having been called that for well over five decades. Fury frowned, thinking that she was intentionally messing with him,

"Serious answers Widow" he snapped, "what is your real name?" he further clarified. This time the Widow frowned as she tried to recall the name she had used during her early years,

"Natalia." She replied slowly, "Natalia Alianovna Romanova" her real name felt strange to her ears after so long without hearing it. Fury nodded and wrote it down in the folder in front of him,

"How old are you?" she faltered,

"I can't answer that" she replied quietly. Fury sighed in frustration but before he could speak she went on,  
"I cannot tell you because I don't know" Fury stared at her not comprehending what he heard for a minute before speaking,  
"You… don't know? How can you not know how old you are?" Natalia shrugged her shoulders; it was not something she was told during her years at the Red Room or the KGB. She simply did not care, figuring it was something she did not need to know therefore she never asked.

"I was never told" she told him. Fury looked at her for moment in disbelief before continuing,  
"I'm assuming you don't know your date of birth either?" he asked, already knowing the answer. Natalia shook her head. He sighed but continued,  
"Where are you from?"

"Mother Russia" she replied instantly

"Who trained you?" she tensed up, her unwanted memories of Ivan and the Red Room coming into her mind, Fury saw and knew it was probably not a pleasant time in her life,  
"The Red Room Facility" she replied quietly. Fury nodded,

"How old were you when you started? Hazard a guess"

"I don't know but I was young, very young" Natalia replied as her eyes glazed over as she saw herself as a small child being beaten to a bloody pulp. Shaking her head slightly, she refocused on Fury, who was watching worriedly, he had apparently called her several times while she was in her day dream.

"Have you had any other employers other than the Red Room?" he asked, he could clearly see that she was holding something back; Natalia frowned slightly but replied anyway,

"Yes, I worked for the KGB after the Red Room fell" Fury leaned forward,

"Tell me everything you know of their organization; their leaders, missions, safe houses. Everything." Natalia, for the first time in her life, happily betrayed her masters to their enemies.

Several hours later, Fury held up a hand to stop the stem of information flowing out of Natalia's mouth as she told him every piece of information she knew on the KGB and their actions, there was a lot.

"Thank you Ms Romanova, we will pick this up tomorrow morning" Fury told her standing up, Natalia also stood. He smiled at her,

"You have given SHIELD a lot of useful information, thank you" Natalia gave him a short bow,

"Thanks are not necessary Director Fury, I don't deserve them" Fury looked at her strangely,

"Yes you do, you are saving many lives with this information Natalia, don't forget that" he told her before gesturing for her to follow him out of the room. Fury led her down several corridors before coming to a stop outside a cell on the detention level; turning towards her he gave the Widow an apologetic look,

"I'm afraid that this is where you will be residing until I can persuade the council to lift the kill order permanently. He opened the door and the Widow walked in without resistance,

"I understand Director, it does not offend me in the slightest, you protect your own people first" she gave him a small smile, "I admire that, my old Masters didn't give a shit about the welfare of their agents" Fury gave her a nod before closing the door and locking it. As he walked away towards where the council was waiting for him, he could not help but feel pity towards the woman he had just locked up.

The Widow glanced round the small cell and saw that it was equipped with a small cot, a sink and toilet. Shrugging slightly, she sat down on the cot and drew her knees up to her chest. It was definitely no where near the worst conditions she had been forced to live in. Barton was looking at her via monitor in the control room and his heart went out towards her, he knew next to nothing about the woman known as the Black Widow but got the feeling that she had never been treated as nicely as Fury had been to her earlier.

"Keep an eye on her and alert me if something happens or if someone other than Fury or Coulson visits her" he ordered one of the technicians. The technician nodded his head before getting back to his task at hand. Barton sighed and left the room.

The council…

"You are saying that she came in willingly?" asked council member one

"Yes Councilman, she did" replied Fury

"And you want us to take her off the kill list?" the second member asked

"Yes, I believe that the Widow will be a valuable asset to us" said Fury

"That's all well and good Director, but the fact remains that she cannot be trusted" the only woman on the council commented

"She can be"

"What makes you say that Fury, the Widow has at least one hundred confirmed kills, what's to stop her from turning on you" the last member spoke.

"The Widow wants to change Council members, she has already agreed to not harm or kill a SHIELD agent as well as to answer my questions" Fury responded

the second member snorted in disbelief before asking,

"And you trust her word on that?"

"What information has she given you Fury?" asked the woman, ignoring her colleague

"She has given me dates, safe houses, locations of evidence against members of the KGB including but not limited to the leaders. She has also supplied us with mission details where the KGB has had their hand in it. All the information has been proved to be correct and she has promised more tomorrow" replied Fury with no small amount of satisfaction as all the Council members looked stunned with then amount the Widow had supplied them.

"That is good to hear Fury, make it clear to the Widow that if she continues co-operating with us, she will be taken off the kill list and perhaps even given a chance at SHIELD" the first Council member told him after a few minutes of silence,

"I will Councilman. Now I must go, I will keep you all updated. Good evening." Fury said before pressing the button to shut down the communication between himself and the Council.

The Widow was already awake the next morning when the door to her cell slammed open and a unidentified agent strode in with an arrogant grin on his face. The Widow remained where she was, sitting with her back to the wall and her feet tucked underneath her. She raised an eyebrow at the agent but said nothing. The agent walked cockily over and loomed over her, attempting to intimidate her,

"You're a murderous little bitch" he sneered at her; "No one wants you here so why don't you do us all a favor and kill yourself already." She continued to stare at him and remained silent.

"It looks like you need a lesson in manners" he told her a few minutes later when she still said nothing. He raised his hand as if to hit her and still she didn't move; she was determined to keep her promise to Fury and not harm any agent of SHIELD if she could help it. Growling in frustration that he was not getting the reaction he wanted from her, the agent lashed out with his fist. The Widow merely held up a hand and caught it before it could connect with her body, her features changed from one of blankness to one of warning.

"Don't" she warned as she released her hold on his hand. The man didn't listen and attacked again, this time throwing multiple punches at the still seated Widow. Gritting her teeth, the Widow blocked them all and fought the urge to fight back. Beyond reason now, the agent stepped back and drew his side arm from its holster and aimed it at the Widow,

"Good bye Black Widow" he sneered as he pulled the trigger.

To be continued….


	19. Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

The Widow leaned quickly to the right as the bullet let the chamber and buried itself in her shoulder instead of her chest. Not fazed in the slightest, she lunged at the agent before he could fire again and disarmed him quickly before kicking him hard in the privates. The agent's eyes watered before he fell to the ground with a scream of pain. The Widow glared daggers into him before sitting back down on the bed and waiting for someone to come and investigate.

Breathing deeply, she focused on her shoulder and dug her fingers into the wound and yanked the bullet out; dropping it next to the gun besides her, she tore off a strip of the blanket they had provided her with the previous night and tied it tightly around the wound before leaning back against the wall and trying her hardest not to follow her instincts and kill the man still whimpering on the ground before her.

Pounding feet further down the corridor alerted her to someone's arrival three minutes later, Barton and two other agents burst into the room and scanned the scene before them.

"Are you alright?" he asked her as he went straight over to her side and started to check her for injuries, the Widow waved a hand to get him to stop before answering,

"I'm fine Agent Barton, thank you for the concern" Barton looked at her seriously for a moment before deciding not to mention the bleeding wound in her shoulder. He turned his attention onto the Agent still crying on the floor,

"Get him up" he ordered the agents who accompanied him into the room; the agents obliged and dragged their comrade up onto his feet, the injured man moaning all the while. Barton punched him in the face as soon as he was up; there was a loud CRACK which signified that the man now had a broken nose along with whatever damage the Widow had done to him.

He howled in pain as blood began to gush out his crooked nose, Barton ignored his pain and spoke,  
"What the fuck do you think you're doing Thompson?" he demanded angrily. Thompson stared at him, his eyes asking for pity,

"I came to get her for breakfast and she attacked me!" he lied, pretending to be the innocent, abused victim. Barton laughed harshly and grabbed the front of his shirt,  
"Don't give me that shit Thompson, we have everything on video" he snarled. Thompson gulped and went pale as he realised he had been found out; the Widow was just watching the situation unfold with a blank expression on her face.

Once more feet could be heard as they ran down the corridor and Fury appeared in the doorway, once more dressed in his long black leather coat, black suit and eye patch. He looked furious and everyone in the room save the Widow gulped and adverted their eyes.

"What the hell happened?" he demanded. Silence.

"He attacked me" the Widow spoke, her voice completely devoid of emotion. All eyes in the room turned towards her,

"It was an unprovoked attack I assure you Director Fury" she continued coolly, "Although that doesn't seem to deter your people from trying to kill me" an underlining coldness accompanied her words. Fury looked at her and winced slightly as he saw the proof of her words, her shoulder covered with the bloody makeshift bandage.

"Take him to interrogation room three" he ordered the agents holding Thompson, they hurriedly nodded and frogmarched the attacker out of the room,  
"Barton, alert Hill about the situation and both of you carry out the interrogation" Barton nodded stiffly to his boss because throwing a last glance at the Widow as he left the room.

Silence filled the room as Fury and the Widow was left alone however it was broken by the Widow,

"You know, your people make it extremely difficult for me to uphold my promises" she commented dryly. Fury sighed and took a step closer, she stiffened and Fury stopped and looked at her with a strange expression on his face. She shrugged her uninjured shoulder slightly but remained tense all the same,

"Forgive me for being wary Director, I do not trust anyone at the moment" Fury nodded, understanding exactly where she was coming from,

"You need medical attention" he said, gesturing towards her shoulder. The Widow glanced at her wound before looking back up at Fury,

"I'm fine" Fury shook his head,

"No you're not, that shoulder needs to be looked at" he insisted. The Widow allowed a small smile to appear on her face,

"Fury, I thank you for your concern but there is no need" she paused and added, "And there is no way in hell I am allowing a doctor to go anywhere near me" her voice making it clear that any future arguments will be a waste of time. Fury growled with frustration,

"Widow, you were shot. That is not a wound to be taken lightly" now the Widow began to get irritated,

"Director, I am fully aware of what being shot entails since I have experienced it many times before now. I. am. Fine." Her voice tinged with impatience and frustration.

"Then what harm can a double check do?" he growled, the Widow rolled her eyes and stood up before stalking over to him,

"I am not allowing a doctor to go anywhere near me Nick Fury, so you better stop pushing the point before I lose what little restraint I have over my actions"

Fury stared at her, his eye wide open in shock while the Widow glared up at him with icy cold eyes.

"Did you just threaten me?" he asked in a dangerous tone. The Widow was not intimidated,

"Yes." She hissed, "I strongly suggest you leave" her right hand clenching into a fist. The urge to attack was getting stronger; she was in a hostile place where she had been attacked twice unprovoked and now was not being listened to. The Widow was about to lose control and it was not something she wanted to happen. Fury opened his mouth to deliver a scathing response but the Widow stopped him; she shook her head quickly as she walked backwards, putting as much distance as she could between her and the one man that perhaps could save her,

"Leave now!" she shouted desperately, her fingers digging so hard into her palms that she drew blood. The Widow began to breathe deeply and shut her eyes as she began to shake in anger. Fury took one look at her and realised that she was deadly serious about being on the verge of losing it. Without another word, he hurried out the cell and slammed the door shut and locking it. He stood outside and quickly turned his communicator before telling the technicians to turn off all cameras and microphones in the Widow's cell, he wanted no one to see this but him.

He watched as she finally lost control; the Widow raised her arm and lashed out at the wall, fortunately the wall was solid metal and not brick therefore her fist did not go straight through, it did however make a dent. The Widow began pounding it, ignoring the wounded shoulder as she vented all her anger into her punches. Finally after twenty minutes and one final explosive punch which succeeded in breaking through the wall, the Widow collapsed to the ground and held her head in the hands as her whole body shook. Blood dripped down from her busted knuckles while she began to breathe deeply again to try and gain some control over herself. Fury had watched the display with a mixture of amazement, shock and something a kin to fear. He shook his head at the raw strength the woman had displayed and worried at the threat she represented.

The Widow looked up ten minutes later and spoke quietly,

"You can come in now Director, I swear I will not harm you" Fury was not too sure about that, however he figured that trust was a two way street and opened the cell door before stepping inside again and shutting it closed behind him.

"What was that Ms Romanova?" he asked as he crouched down in front of her, the Widow flinched at the use of her real name and remained silent for several moments,

"Forgive me, it is hard for me to ignore my instincts when I feel threatened" she replied softly. Fury shook his head, not sure he wanted to know what she had to go through to make her instincts that vicious.

"You were adamant when it came to not seeing a doctor, why?" she began to shake again,  
"Don't make me tell, please" she whispered, her eyes hollow and filled with anguish as memories of people in white coats entered her mind and her screaming echoing inside her head. Fury was stunned at the amount of pain in her eyes and did not force the issue, instead he changed the subject,  
"You punched through a metal wall Widow, that should not be possible" she smirked slightly at that,

"I have many skills and abilities Fury" she spoke cryptically, too tired to go into a details. Fury nodded, he knew she was hiding a lot more that she was saying but decided to save the rest of the conversation for later.

"We were meant to continue our arrangement this morning; however I believe after the events that have just occurred, we will postpone it for later." The Widow nodded, not letting any of the relief that she was feeling show on her face. Fury stood up,

"Food and a first aid kit will be sent to you soon and I will see you this afternoon"

"Thank you" she said quietly. Fury nodded and left the room.

A woman who introduced herself as agent Hill appeared one hour later with a tray of food and some medical supplies.

"We found out why Thompson attacked you this morning" Hill stated as she set the food down on the cot next to the Widow. The Widow raised an eyebrow,  
"He believes that you are the one responsible for his sister's murder last year" Hill informed her. The Widow frowned at that,  
"What was her name?" she asked quietly, looking the agent in the eye. Hill stared back at her,

"Amy. Amy Thompson" the Widow thought about it for a long moment before shaking her head,  
"I did not kill her, she was innocent I assume?" she replied, her tone expressionless. Hill looked at her with a cold expression on her face, apparently offended by the Widow's causal disregard for human life,

"Yes" she replied stiffly. The Widow nodded and spoke again,

"Then I definitely know I did not kill her, I have made an effort not to kill innocents anymore" Hill looked at her strangely,  
"What do you mean, 'anymore'?" she asked curiously, the Widow looked at her for a moment before deciding that she could trust the woman,

"Before I defected from the KGB, I murdered anyone my Masters ordered me to, however the last mission I was ordered to carry out was to murder a five year old girl to gain her father's co-operation. I refused and went on the run, knowing that if I went back I would face pain beyond belief. After that, well, all I knew how to do was kill so I took on the life of a contract assassin. I promised my self however that I would not kill innocents if I could help it" she paused to look at Hill, "I have already killed enough of those during my days as a mindless assassin" Hill nodded her head understandingly, she also caught onto the word 'mindless' and decided to mention it to Fury.

"I have to go. I will see you later" Hill said as she stood up. The Widow nodded,

"It was a pleasure to have met you Agent Hill" she responded. Hill left the room leaving the Widow alone to attend to her wounds.

She was confused. The Widow had only ever learnt to respect those who she feared and yet she knew that somehow Fury and that woman Hill had gained hers in just the short time she had been here. It was irritating. It was much easier to betray and cut off ties with those who she had no connection with but yet it appeared that that it was not going to be that easy if she ever did decide to escape SHIELD.

Fury came back five hours later as promised with Agent Hill and Agent Coulson flanking him,

"Follow me please Ms Romanova" he told her from the open door way. The Widow obediently stood up and walked towards them,

"Can you please stop calling me by that name?" she asked. Fury glanced at her as they began to walk down the corridor,

"That is your name is it not? What do you want me to call you?" he asked, the Widow shrugged and responded bluntly,

"Widow is fine for now. That name is one I have not been called for many years Director; I find it strange to be addressed an actual person rather than an asset" Hill and Coulson exchanged a look behind them at her words while Fury nodded his head,  
"Very well, although if are serious about changing, you are going to have to get used to being called by an actual name." the Widow nodded her head,

"When I am sure that I do actually have a future, I will decide on a name" she replied coolly.

They stopped at one of the interrogation rooms and all went inside.

"All recording equipment has been shut off for this session" Fury told her as he took a seat on the right side of the table. The Widow was instantly on her guard,

"Why?" she growled. Hill and Coulson took up position behind their bosses chair and stared at the Widow,

"Because there are some questions we want answers to that I do not think anyone else needs to know about" Fury answered her, "Now, please take a seat" he waved at the chair on the opposite side of the table. Reluctantly, the Widow walked over and settled herself on the edge of the chair, tense and ready to fight if need be.

"Firstly, agent Hill and agent Coulson have been brought up to date on everything you provided us with yesterday and also have sworn not to breathe a word of what you say today to anyone without your expressive consent." Fury informed her. She blinked at him before switching her gaze back and forth between the two agents. She slowly nodded her head and turned her attention back on to Fury,

"Fine, but be warned that there are going to be things I will not tell you" Fury nodded, accepting that fact.

"Your wounds seemed to be doing well" he commented as he gazed at her almost fully healed knuckles. The Widow chuckled,

"Yes well, I heal fast"

"One of those abilities you mentioned earlier?" he asked. She nodded her head.

"How?"

"A gift from the Red Room" she answered quietly, "I was given a serum, similar to the one given to Captain America" Fury nodded.

"What other abilities does the serum give you?" he asked, The Widow fixed him with a hard glare before answering,

"It merely enhances the skills I have already acquired. Strength, speed, balance and my senses are also enhanced" she deliberately did not mention the age factor.

"How long have you had the serum?" Hill asked. The Widow turned towards her,

"I don't know" she told her honestly. Hill nodded and remained silent. The Widow spoke again,

"Before you ask, the serum does not show up in my blood therefore there is no use trying to replicate it." A warning accompanied her words; she was not going to be used as a lab rat. A tense silence followed her words.

Fury spoke again,

"Will you allow us to run tests on you?"

"No" she replied vehemently, he raised an eyebrow,

"Why not?" she did not answer, "Widow, your continued existence relies on you co-operating with us" he told her, she gave him her best 'Black Widow' glare as an answer. He sighed,

"I need a legitimate reason Widow, otherwise I will simply have you restrained and forced to take the tests" Her eyes widened,

"You do that and you are just as bad as my Masters in the KGB" she spat, jumping to her feet. Hill and Coulson immediately had their guns in their hands and aimed at her.

"Widow, calm down" Fury spoke quietly, "Do not do something you will regret later" she chuckled at that,

"I have already done many things I regret Director, what is more red on my ledger in the grander scheme of things?" she asked, her tone mocking. Fury stood up and slowly began to walk around the table,

"This is not the woman I knew ten minutes ago who got shot in her attempt to uphold her promise in an effort to change." The Widow pressed herself up against the wall and growled,

"You are right; this is the assassin who does not care who she kills or harms" Fury stopped and looked at her,

"That is not you, I have seen you; the real you. Natalia Romanova is not a bad person at heart" he told her.

"Aren't you listening Fury, this is me. I'm a monster. A killer. I have killed so many during my life; do you really think that three more is going to bother me?"

"Yes" he told her quietly, "Because I believe you were telling me the truth when you said you were tired of killing" a cracked appeared her mask and the three agents saw a look at the vulnerable, exhausted woman that was hidden away behind walls of defences.

"Just do not make me see the doctors" she muttered quietly, all her strength appearing to desert her as she slumped to the ground and placed her head in her hands.

"Why Natalia? Why do you fear them so much?" Fury asked, crouching down in front of her and taking one of her hands in his. She looked up at him, her eyes filled with anguish,

"Because they will hurt me" she whispered, "they always hurt me" only Fury could make out the words she was saying.

"Tell me" he asked her softly. She was silent for a few minutes,

"I have been used as a test subject in many experiments during my time at the Red Room. I felt pain worse than anything you could possibly imagine and I longed to die every time I entered that room but they would not let me. Do you want to know why I don't know my own age?" she told him. Fury nodded and continued to hold her hand, squeezing it gently for comfort. The Widow took a deep breath and told him,

"My mind has been the play thing of others for as long as I can remember, every time they saw something they did not like, they pulled it out and stuffed other things in their place. My mind has been wiped and new memories implanted so many times that I cannot tell the difference between what is real and not anymore." She looked into his eyes and continued, "I've have been programmed to obey orders without question using both that mind machine and torture" she gave a harsh laugh,

"It's an effective combination. It takes so much effort on my part not to obey the orders you and Coulson have given me because it is what my programming demands me to do" Fury was silent for a long moment,

"How much of this programming have you broken down?" he asked, the Widow looked at him and shrugged,

"Fifty percent perhaps? The idea is that when it finally does all break down, I will be able to separate the false memories from the real and actually be able to ignore orders without causing myself harm in the process." Fury looked at her sharply,  
"What do you mean by that? You just told me that it only takes effort to ignore orders, not that is actually causes you pain" she gave a light chuckle,

"Ah well, it is not important, pain is a normal concept for me and anyway I deserve it" Fury shook his head,

"I may be able to help to accelerate the process, however it will require you to visit a doctor" The Widow stiffened and he hurried on,

"I will be there personally and make sure that no one harms you" she looked at him for a moment before nodding,

"If this works, I will owe you a debt" Fury nodded and helped her onto her feet,  
"We have a deal" he said shaking her hand.

Hill and Coulson stared at the two confused. They had not the slightest idea what they had been talking about however they suspected it was something serious judging by their expressions. Fury turned towards his second and third in command,

"Hill, go down to the medical wing and inform them that I and the Widow will be down there shortly"

"Yes sir" she replied and with one last confused look at her boss, walked out of the room to obey his orders.

"Coulson, make sure everyone is aware that I am unavailable for the remainder of the day" he gave no explanation however Coulson had been around him long enough that he did not need one,

"Yes sir" he replied before he too left the room. Fury glanced at the expressionless woman next to him,

"Are you ready?" she took a deep breath and nodded.

"Let's do this"


	20. Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty

Fury walked into the medical wing with the Widow trailing behind him. She glanced warily around her, her body tense as though she expected to be harmed at any moment. Fury noticed her uncertainty and stood next to her before putting a hand on her shoulder,

"No one is going to hurt you here Widow" he told her quietly. The Widow looked up at him and nodded, relief coursing through her as she realised that she actually had someone to protect her this time.

"Director Fury, what can we do for you?" a middle aged woman spoke as she stepped forward.

"Doctor Jones, I need you to help the Widow, you have been working on a machine that specialises in mental barriers correct?" Jones eyes widened as she realised what she was being asked to do.

"Yes Sir, however it is yet to be tested" she stammered. The Widow stepped forward, her back straight and stiff and her face blank,

"Do it" she stated. Fury and Jones looked at her. Fury nodded, he knew that the Widow was desperate to get control over her own actions and resolved to support her the whole way. Jones, after receiving the go ahead from Fury called her team to set up the experimental machine,

We're ready" she told them five minutes later. Without hesitation, the Widow walked forward and laid on the table. The team of doctors got to work, restraining and attaching electrodes to her body.

"What are the restraints for?" Fury demanded dangerously as he saw the Widow tense up.

"She needs to stay still throughout the procedure and this is the only way to make sure she does" Jones hurried to explain. The Widow looked at Fury from where she was strapped down and gave a slight nod. Jones walked over to her and into her vision,

"This may not work Ms Widow" she said.

"At least I can say I tried" she replied.

"It is going to hurt. A lot." Jones warned. The Widow froze for a moment before answering,

"I can handle it. Do it." Jones nodded once more before retreating towards the monitors.

"Starting in five… four… three… two… one!"

The Widow's back arched from where she was restrained and she threw back her head before letting loose a scream of agony. Fury started forwards, an angry/ worried look on his face; he was stopped however by several doctors,

"Don't!" one warned; "You will make it worse" Fury glared at him,

"Shut it down!" he ordered. They shook their heads,

"We can't, the machine will only shut down once the procedure has finished" the second one explained.

"What are her chances of survival?" he asked quietly as the Widow continued to scream and writhe under the pain inside her head.

"At this rate… thirty percent" Jones told him, her eyes glued to the monitor in front of her. The completion bar was slowly climbing and was currently at thirty eight percent. Fury watched on powerless to do stop it while the Widow screamed.

"STOP PLEASE! She screamed, slipping back into her memories of the Red Room, it felt all too similar to the days she had to endure the multiple experiments her Masters threw at her. Fury's heart wrenched as he heard her, he knew she believed that she was back in her nightmares and he was furious that he could not help her.

"Just let me die" she pleaded as her screams turned into sobs. It went on for another two hours and by the end everyone was on edge from her screams and cries of pain, she had resorted to begging during the last half an hour of the procedure and Fury was just about to grant her her wish before a sudden beeping emitted from the monitor and the Widow went still as the programme ended.

Doctors from all corners of the room ran over and undid the restraints before checking her vitals,

"She's alive but her pulse is very weak" one told Fury before they transferred her into a waiting portable bed and began to push her towards the doors. Fury began to follow but was stopped by Jones,

"One minute please Director, you may want to have a look at this" she told him, gesturing towards the monitors. Fury walked over quickly and looked at the screens but understood none of what it way saying,

"Explain please Doctor" he asked her impatiently.

"Firstly, the procedure was successful, the mental barriers placed on her mind have now been broken" she informed him,

"Hold up 'barriers' as in more than one?" Fury asked, raising an eyebrow. Jones nodded her head,

"Yes, the Widow had a grand total of nine barriers placed around various aspects of her brain. See these grey areas" she drew up a CAT scan of the Widow's brain and pointed to the numerous grey patches dotted around, Fury nodded,

"They are scar tissue" Fury looked at her in surprise, "This woman's brain was literally used as a play thing by a very careless professional; it is incredible that she is actually alive let alone sane with the amount of damage done to her" Jones explained seriously. Fury continued to stare at the monitor for a few moments, he wanted to find out exactly what the Widow had been through and then find the people responsible and kill them.

"Thank you Doctor Jones, please place a copy of the results in her file before deleting the original and all other information pertaining the Widow" as he strode towards the door.

"Yes Sir" Jones muttered as she studied the information before her with pity for the Widow.

Her eyes shot open and the Widow quickly raised herself into a sitting position as she looked around her. She found herself in a small room, complete with white walls, a couple of chairs and a bedside table. Slipping out of the bed she started for the door, wary and on guard, 'Where am I?' just before she reached it, the door opened and a man in a lab coat walked in; her instincts took over and she grabbed him by the throat and shoved him into the wall,

"Where am I?" she asked hoarsely, her voice having being destroyed by the screaming. The man struggled desperately in her grip as he tried to get air into his lungs,

"Safe" he choked out, she narrowed her eyes and squeezed tighter,

"WHERE. AM. I?" she demanded again, louder this time. The man slowly started to turn purple as his brain was cut off from the oxygen it desperately needed.

"WIDOW, RELEASE HIM!" a voice shouted authoritively at her, she turned her gaze upon the doorway and found a tall, African-American man with an eye patch and long leather coat standing there. She recognized him vaguely from somewhere however her mind was extremely confused.

"WIDOW. NOW" Fury ordered. Frowning at him, the Widow obeyed and released the man, who collapsed onto the ground gasping and coughing.

"Who are you? How do you know me?" she asked warily as she stumbled backwards. Fury walked further into the room,

"Do you not recognize me?" he asked, she shook her head warily.

"I am Director Fury of SHIELD. You are currently in one of our medical recovery rooms at our headquarters" she widened her eyes,

"You're meant to be dead. I shot you" she stammered, her mind getting confused as it tried to differentiate what was real, what was not and where exactly in time it was. Now it was Fury's turn to frown.

"Widow, what are you talking about, you never shot me" he was concerned for her mental wellbeing and was starting to think that maybe she was not right in the head. The Widow shook her head,

"I shot you, it was a clear shot through the window" she informed him before doubling over and grasping her head,

"My head" she gasped before she collapsed onto the ground. Fury rushed over to her and gently picked her up and placed her back onto the bed. Sitting down in one of the chairs next to her, he frowned deeply as he remembered the event that the Widow had just described. He could not believe that she was involved, let alone the one responsible for almost killing him. And anyway she didn't look older than twenty two years old, so unless she shot him when she was seven, which he highly doubted, he put it down as her confusing it with another kill mission she had done in the past.

Fury sat waiting for the Widow to wake up for nearly five hours; during that time, Barton, Coulson and Hill had all made an appearance to check up on him and the Widow's condition. It was incredible he marvelled that although the Widow had given them no reason to trust her thus far, the three top agents in his organisation had already accepted her as one of their own. He shook his head, 'maybe when all this settled down, she could be' he thought. He was snapped out of his thoughts as the Widow stirred and opened her eyes. She blinked several times before her gaze focused on Fury,

"Director?" she asked. Fury sighed with relief,

"Yes, you're not going to attack me are you?" he asked, only half joking. The Widow frowned,

"No, why should I? Do I have a reason to?" she replied and she looked generally concerned about having to do so. Fury quickly shook his head,

"No you don't but I was just checking since the last time you awoke you attacked a medical officer." He responded with a chuckle. She glared at him and muttered,

"I hate doctors, what'd you expect?" he conceded her point since from what she had told him earlier, she had no reason to do so.

"Don't worry no one blames you" he reassured her, "I have a question however, before you collapsed, you said that I should be dead after you apparently shot me through a window" he looked at her and saw that she had gone tense at his words,

"My question is, why did you think that?" he saw her battling furiously with herself before finally coming to a decision.

She looked at him deadly serious,

"Before I tell you, I want you to promise that what I say here never leaves this room" Fury frowned at her and thought about it,

"Will the information compromise or endanger SHIELD in anyway?" he asked her.

"No" she paused before conceding, "At least I don't think it should" he sighed it was better than he had hoped,

"Fine I promise, now what did you mean?" the Widow was silent for a few minutes,

"I was the one responsible for your assassination attempt fifteen years ago" she informed his quietly. Fury looked at her sharply,

"Widow you look barely a day over twenty two years old and I highly doubt that you were assassinating people at that age." The Widow chuckled darkly,

"Looks can be deceiving Director, I am older than I look" she replied, she sobered and turned serious again,

"I was following orders at the time Fury, you were an enemy of Mother Russia and I was ordered to take you out"

"But you failed" he pointed out

"Yes, I failed. Although not for lack of trying" she smiled grimly at him,

"You were lucky, at the exact moment I fired, you moved and therefore got struck in the chest, not the heart" silence followed her words,

"So you are older than you appear?" she nodded,

"Yes, though I still told the truth, I really did not know my age when you first asked me" he leaned forwards,

"And now you do?" he questioned.

"The procedure worked, the barriers have been lifted and my mind is becoming clearer with every passing moment. I am seventy one years old" not many things could surprise Fury; however he felt that this was one of them.

"Seventy one?" he repeated. The Widow nodded,

"Yes, three and a half decades with the Red Room and then two and a half with the KGB before going freelance for eight years" she replied.

"I'm going to need time to process this and figure out where we go next. I will come and see you later" he told her, still slightly stunned as he stood up. She nodded and closed her eyes again, his reaction amused her greatly and it had been a long time since she had laughed. As soon as he did leave the room, she let it out and did not stop until ten minutes later.

He came back as promised three hours later; the Widow was currently occupying herself by staring at the ceiling. She glanced at Fury when he walked in before returning her gaze back onto the ceiling,

"So am I going to be shot?" she asked. Fury retook his seat next to her,

"Why would you ask that?" he responded,

"Because I attempted to kill you, I'm pretty sure that counts at treason not to mention against the law" she replied.

"You were obeying orders, and like you said, it is not like you had any choice in the matter" he told her gruffly. She finally focused her attention onto him,

"Why are you being so kind to me? I already owe you a debt, there is no need to treat me as though I am deserving of it" she said. He half smirked,

"Widow, you really have got to stop being so hard on yourself, you did not have a choice back then however you do now and that is all I'm interested in. So if I want to treat you like a human being and not like a damn expendable asset, I will. And you better except that pretty quickly, because it is not going to change anytime soon."

She stared at him for a moment,

"Thank you" she told him softly. He nodded,

"Now, are you up for giving me more information on the KGB?" she nodded her head eagerly and began the torrent of information again, Fury recorded everything via a portable recorder.

Another four hours later, he held up a hand to stop her,

"That's enough for today; we will pick it up again tomorrow. Get some rest" he told her with a small smile. He left the room and the Widow drifted off to sleep.

For the next several weeks, the Widow's schedule was as followed:

0600 getting up at and doing her own fitness routine

0700 breakfast was delivered to her cell

0800 Fury or Hill would collect her and take her to the interrogation room where she would give them every bit of useful information she knew on the KGB and their allies

1200 she was given lunch and a break

1300 the information giving was resumed

1900 dinner was served and she was taken back to her cell.

The same cycle was repeated over and over for the next fourteen days. She was getting bored of it pretty quickly however did not to complain, she was walking on thin ice and knew that the Council could easily change their minds about the kill order if they wanted to, therefore she did not dare to step out of line and obeyed Fury and Hill's orders without hesitation. Barton visited her most nights and they spent several hours talking about rubbish. Their pasts were never discussed by an unspoken agreement and so they ended up talking about favourite books, films etc. Barton was appalled at her lack of knowledge when it came to those areas and so took it upon himself to educate her in what he considered the classics.

"So the Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of the greatest pieces of work ever written and you are telling me that you have never heard of them? He asked in disbelief. She chuckled at his face and responded,

"That is correct Agent Barton" he waved a hand impatiently,

"Lose the 'Agent' business please, we're friends are we not?" he said while grinning. She raised a perfect eyebrow,

"I don't have friends Barton, I lost that ability a long time ago" her eyes glazed over as she remembered her last friend and how it ended. Barton's grin faded as he saw her look, attempting to snap her out of it he spoke again,

"Well Widow, you just hadn't met me before" his tone arrogant. That did it,  
"Shut up" she lightly pushed him, he fell off the bed anyway. Looking up at her, he burst out laughing, the Widows mouth twitched but nothing more,,  
"Aw come on, I know you want to laugh, just let it out Widow, no one will know" she tilted her head slightly,

"I don't know what you're talking about" she replied coolly. He grinned at her tone,  
"Course you don't" he replied, copying her tone.

"You're so childish Barton" she commented as she leaned her back against the wall.

"Yes. Yes I am" he said proudly, earning an eye roll from her.

"Can I ask you something?" he asked, suddenly serious

"You just did" she replied dryly, Barton opened his mouth and then closed it as he thought back to what just happened,

"Then can I ask you two questions?" he asked, keeping a straight face she replied in the same tone,

"That was your second question" he mock glared at her,

"Dammit Widow, Do you want to stay here at SHIELD?" she opened her eyes and stared at him, her face serious,

"I have no where else to go Barton, and anyway I owe both you and Fury a debt. I'm not going to leave until those debts are repaid"

"You don't owe me anything" he said, frowning. She shook her head,

"You decided to give me a second chance Barton, for that I am grateful and someday I hope to repay you for that chance" They both fell silent after that,

"Can I please do something physical tomorrow? I feel like I'm going insane just sitting here and answering questions" she suddenly asked. Barton chuckled and stood up,

"I'll see what I can do. Good night Widow"

"Good night Agent Barton" she replied with a smile. He laughed lightly before leaving the room.

The next morning, she found out that Barton had kept his word when Hill took her to a gym and not the normal interrogation room when she came to collect her that morning.

"Barton informed us that you were getting restless" Hill said as she walked onto the mat.

"Yes" the Widow responded cautiously, "I'm not used to be cooped up for long periods of time" Hill flashed a smile her way,  
"I can understand that" as she settled into a defence stance. The Widow eyed her cautiously,

"You want to spar?" Hill nodded,

"Barton's busy for a few hours and I was the only one willingly to do so. You have inspired a great amount of fear into our agents even though the majority of them have never met you." She informed the Widow. The Widow smirked at that before copying Hill and settled into her stance,

"I warn you, I will not go easy" Hill said.

"Give it your best shot" the Widow replied. And Hill did, she was an excellent fighter, the Widow had to admit that, however the Widow was better. Not once did Hill manage to land a hit on her and so the fight was over several minutes later with Hill on the ground and the Widow on top of her.

"I yield" Hill told her calmly, the Widow immediately got off her and took a step back. Hill got gingerly back onto her feet,  
"Damn you can fight" she complemented the other woman.

"Thank you. You're not bad yourself Agent Hill, if I did not have the serum you would definitely be a formidable opponent" replied the Widow with a slight bow.

"Shall we go again?" Hill asked. In answer, the Widow settled back into her stance before attacking. It went on for several hours and Hill was feeling extremely sore by the end of it. She knew the Widow had been holding back on her strength as to avoid any serious damage and for that she was thankful.

Slow clapping brought their attention towards the rear wall where Fury was currently leaning against it, apparently having been watching for several minutes.

"That was very well done" he told them both as he approached.

"I'm assuming she has passed her physical test?" he asked his second in command, Hill nodded in affirmative. If she was bothered that she was being tested, the Widow did not show it,

"You were testing me" she stated, both Fury and Hill nodded,

"We wanted to see what you could do" Hill explained as she wiped sweat of her brow with a towel.

"I have just spent the morning with the Council concerning you." Fury told her,

"They have been impressed with the amount of Intel you have given us and have agreed to give you a test trial of six months to see whether you can be trusted or not to become a SHIELD agent" the Widow stared at him stunned,  
"You.. you want me to join SHIELD?" they both nodded, "so this means you are not going to kill me?" they both smirked at her,

"Not yet" Fury answered, "It's still on the table in case we decide we cannot trust you by the end of your probation period" the Widow nodded her head solemnly,

"What will I be doing during this test trial?" she asked.

"Agent Hill has agreed to be your handler for the next six months, she will be training you and informing you about the guidelines here at SHIELD. Reports on your progress will be sent to me daily. I trust you will behave?" he answered.

"Yes Director" she replied seriously giving him a small bow.

"Good, I will see you in a week's time to check in on you" with that he left the room.

"So… is there any specific titles I need to address you as now that you are my superior officer?" she asked Hill. Hill smirked,

"Agent Hill or Ma'am is fine" the Widow nodded,

"Yes Ma'am" she replied seriously.

"The first thing we need to do is fill in the basic paperwork so that you are actually on record as a probationary SHIELD agent." Hill told her as they sat at the table in one of the conference rooms. The Widow nodded her head.

"I need a name to put on the form, do you have any idea of what you want to go by now?" Hill asked her. The Widow considered it for several minutes before answering,  
"Romanoff, Natasha Romanoff" Hill nodded and dutifully wrote it down,

"I like it. It's very… American" she told the newly christened Widow. Romanoff smirked,

"Since I am technically going to be an Agent for America, I thought it would be best if I chose a name that would fit in"

"Technically SHIELD is a global organisation, we don't answer to one single government since we are tasked with the protection of every country around the world" Hill commented. Romanoff pulled a face that said 'whatever'

"What's next?" she asked

"Date of birth and age" Hill said,

"Put down November 19th as the date" Hill gave her a strange look,

"It was the day I defected from the KGB" Romanoff shrugged. Hill nodded and wrote it down.

"Year?"

"1977" she answered

"Nationality: Russian, I assume" Hill said, Romanoff merely nodded. They went back and forth like this for several hours before Hill finally put her pen down,  
"Finished!" she exclaimed with relief. Romanoff smiled,

"I assume I will be going back to my cell now?" she asked. Hill gave her a grin,

"Oh no, the Council has agreed that since you are no longer a prisoner as such, you get your own quarters" Romanoff blinked in surprise,

"Really?" Hill nodded.

A knock at the door stopped whatever she was going to say,

"Come in" Hill called. The door opened and Barton strode in with a grin on his face,  
"Sup Hill, Widow" he said as he settled down in one of the vacant chairs. Romanoff stared at him in disbelief, if she had addressed a superior officer like that during her years in the Red Room or the KGB, she would have been beaten within an inch of her life. Hill evidently was thinking upon similar lines,  
"Agent Barton, what is my rank?" she asked as though she was generally interested in his answer. Barton's grinned slipped slightly,  
"Second in command, why?" Hill nodded her head,  
"And what's yours?" she further questioned, Barton did not like the direction this conversation was taking,  
"I'm a level eight Agent"

"Right, so unless the ranking system has changed during the last hour, I outrank you isn't that correct? She said still in that conversational tone. Barton looked at her uneasily and nodded. Romanoff was watching them with a small smile on her face; it was like watching a very interesting tennis match.

"Therefore, what makes you think you can address me in such a way? She finally got to her point. Barton looked puzzled for a moment before back tracking,  
"Ah yes apologizes Agent Hill, Ma'am" he said as he realised his error. Hill nodded satisfied,

"Good. Since you are here however Agent Barton, you can take Romanoff to her new quarters" gesturing to the Widow. The grin was back as he stared at the Widow,  
"Finally chosen a name eh? What is it?" he asked. The Widow graced him with a half smile,  
"Natasha Romanoff" he nodded,

"Suits you" he said before turning back to Hill, "And of course Ma'am" Hill nodded,

"Very well. Good night to you both. Romanoff, I will see you in the training room at 0730 tomorrow" Romanoff nodded and got to her feet,  
"Yes Ma'am" she replied before following Barton out the door.

"Natasha Romanoff huh?"

"Yes" she responded

"Is Hill treating you alright? She has the nick name, 'Hardass Hill' for a reason" Romanoff looked at him,

"I'm sure I can deal with whatever Agent Hill throws my way" Barton nodded as though agreeing with her,

"I'm sure you can. Just good luck though" he told her as he stopped by a doorway,

"Mine's just two doors down, if you need anything, come and find me yeah?" he informed her,

"Thank you Agent Barton" she replied softly before opening her door and slipping inside.

Several days went by without an incident; Romanoff found that if she glared at the other agents, they generally left her alone and she was glad for that since she was not a people person at all. It seemed that everyone except Fury, Hill, Coulson and Barton was afraid of her and she got a lot of amusement from that. Several times she had noticed several agents suddenly change directions as soon as they caught sight of her, it amused her to no end. Of course she never actually showed the amusement on her face rather she kept her features impressively blank.

She obeyed her orders from Hill to the letter and never showed disrespect to a superior officer, the programming compelling her to do so may be gone, however six decades of conditioning with the use of violence was not going to disappear over night.

An alarm started blaring at three am one morning and Romanoff instantly rolled out of bed into a defence stance. Realising the threat was not in her room, she quickly got changed into her SHIELD issued catsuit before running out of her room and down the corridor. Barton caught up with her,  
"What's going on?" she asked him as they ran side by side, Barton answered grimly,

"We're under attack"

"Where are we going?" she took the news in her stride and remained professional,

"Fury's office. He's the biggest target therefore we need to protect him" gun shots were heard behind them and they dodged out of the way, Barton handed her a gun before stopping and drawing an arrow from his quiver and placing it on his bow string,

"I've got this. Go" he yelled over his shoulder. She hesitated for a moment before nodding and continuing on her way. Five minutes she reached Fury's office and pressed an ear to the door, hearing voices she cocked her gun before opening it quickly and rolled into the room. Seeing that it was only Fury and Hill, she quickly shut the door,  
"Good, you're both alive" she told them. Hill lowered her gun,  
"You almost got your self shot there Widow" she said, Romanoff shrugged her shoulders,

"It had to be done" they looked at each other for a moment,

"How goes it out there" Fury asked,

"Barton was holding them off in the East corridor, I don't know about the rest of the facility though" she answered. She suddenly stiffened,

"They're coming." She warned as she stood to face the door, her gun ready to kill. Hill and Fury took cover behind his desk. The door burst open and two men entered, the Widow shot them in the head without hesitation and waiting for the next attacker. More came in, at least twelve men stormed into the room; she killed five of them before the gun was knocked from her hands and she was forced onto her knees. The men stood to attention as a lone pair of footsteps echoed from down the corridor and a figure stepped into the door way. The Widow's eyes widened,  
"No" she gasped, the familiar pit of fear once again making itself known in her stomach.

"Hello Widow" the cold voice of Madame Rozalina echoed around the room.


	21. Chapter Twenty one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: WARNING: Torture scene. Do not read if you don't like that kind of thing.

Chapter Twenty-one

"No" she gasped, the familiar pit of fear once again making itself known in her stomach.

"Hello Widow" the cold voice of Madame Rozalina echoed around the room. The Widow stared in horror at the woman, who had instilled such fear in her,

"It's been too long" Viper said walking closer and cupping the Widow's cheek with her hand.

"Who are you?" Demanded Fury from where he was kneeling by his desk, a gun trained on him. Viper smiled evilly at him,

"Why don't you introduce us Widow?" she said, looking down at her ex-student. The Widow opened her mouth and whispered,

"Director Fury, this is Madame Rozalina, ex leader of the KGB" Fury's eye widened slightly,

"What the hell do you want?" he demanded rudely.

"tsk tsk" Viper replied, "No need to be rude Director, I simply came for what's mine" she gestured at the Widow. The Widows eyes widened in fear,

"I don't belong to you anymore Viper" she spat. Viper backhanded her across the face,

"You do not speak until your Master gives you permission" she snarled. The Widow gazed up at her defiantly.

"You are not my Master anymore" she said through gritted teeth. Viper chuckled coldly,

"You have regained your fire I see; it will be a pleasure to break your spirit a second time Widow. Remember, I know how to." The Widow paled slightly.

Viper turned her attention back onto Fury and Hill,

"I have no use for either of you and I think many people will thank me if you were dead" she gestured at the one holding the gun at Fury, the guard put his finger on the trigger, suddenly a knife embedded its self into his head. The man dropped to the ground dead; the Widow had slipped from the hands restraining her and had thrown one of the knives hidden in her boots at the man. Viper spun back round to face her and was greeted by a hard punch in the face. The other men in the room converged on her and she exploded into action. Hill and Fury took the time to edge towards the exit.

Fury caught the Widow's eye and she nodded, he quickly shoved Hill out the door and began to follow but Viper yelled at him to stop,

"Don't take another step Fury or you're dead" Fury froze. "Turn around" he did as she said and found himself face to face with the barrel of her gun.

"Widow" Viper called behind her to where the Widow was still fighting Vipers men,  
"If you do not come quietly, I will kill Director Fury right now" the sounds of fighting ceased almost immediately. When Viper looked round it was because all her men were lying on the ground some moaning while others were still. The Widow looked at Viper with murder in her eyes. Viper cocked the gun,

"You're fast Widow but you're not that fast. Surrender or he dies" she warned her.

The Widow caught Fury's eye, he saw the internal struggle she was having; either kill the one woman who had destroyed her life or let the man she owed her new life to die.

"Widow don't she's bluffing" Fury told her.

"Bluffing am I?" Viper said, a smirk appearing on her face as she changed the aim of the gun to a less life threatening area, the Widow's eyes widened as she realised what Viper was about to do,

"NO!" She shouted,

"What was that Widow?" asked Viper sweetly, her gaze never leaving Fury.

"I'll go with you willingly, just don't harm or kill him" she pleaded.

"Prove it" ordered Viper as she half turned to watch, the Widow slowly raised her hands in the air before getting onto her knees. Fury watched in disbelief as the world's most deadly assassin surrendered to save his life.

"I'm glad you saw it my way Widow" Viper told her coldly, "Remember, you try anything, he dies" the Widow nodded.

"The same goes to you Fury; you do something I don't like, it's the Widow who will pay for it. Understood?"

"Yes" Fury growled.

"Excellent, now I believe it's time to go, other men will meet us on the way out." She glanced at her watch as five of her men stumbled onto their feet with various injuries.

"Let's go" she ordered as she walked out of the door, The Widow was marched out behind her by two men and Fury came after also accompanied by two guards. The last man watched their flanks to make sure no SHIELD agents came to their rescue.

They were shoved into the back of a van, their hands tied tightly behind their backs before the doors were slammed shut and the van began to move. Silence occurred for several minutes before Fury spoke,

"Thank you for saving my life" he told her quietly. Romanoff shrugged,

"You're welcome Director although my debt I believe has been repaid." He looked at her worriedly; she gave him a small smile,

"Don't worry, the debt may have been paid but I am still one of your agents, my job is to protect you when I can" Fury nodded, relieved.

"How do you suggest we go about escaping?" Romanoff glanced at him,

"I'm afraid escaping is out of the question without outside help; we need to endure Viper until help arrives." He gave her a questioning look,

"Viper?" he asked. Romanoff nodded,

"That was her codename during the days of the KGB; Madame Viper was a lethal and dangerous operative in her own right." She grimaced,

"She was also my teacher for two decades" Fury snorted,

"Great, kidnapped by your psycho ex teacher/master" Romanoff rolled her eyes,

"Just do what ever she says and whatever you do, do not show weakness." He glanced at her,

"What constitutes at weakness in her books?"

"Don't make a sound if you're in pain, don't cry, don't look away, don't shut your eyes and do not beg" she told him seriously,

"Just keep quiet and allow me to deal with her." She paused and looked at her Director,

"You won't be able to handle it; I have gone through this many times before."

"Romanoff, you don't have to go through this to protect me" Fury said, Romanoff smiled,

"Don't worry about me, I can take it. Just don't do anything that will make it worse" Fury was about to respond when the van lurched to a stop.

"We're here" she muttered.

The Van doors were opened and they were yanked out. The Widow walked with her head high, not a trace of fear on her delicate features. Fury however, glared any man who looked his way as he was frogmarched towards the compound one hundred meters away.

"Welcome to my new home" Viper told them coldly as she led them in through the doors. They were shoved into a large cell with a single chair and chain hanging from the ceiling,

"Tie the esteemed Director to the chair and the Widow by the chain" she ordered her men. Fury was manhandled into the chair and secured with rope while the Widow walked calmly over to the waiting chain and did not resist as her arms were stretched as to be able to be cuffed. She was left standing on the very tips of her toes. Viper stood in front of her,

"Just like old times eh Widow?" she taunted the helpless woman. The Widow said nothing and kept her face blank.

"One question before we start Widow; why did you betray me?" Viper was truly curious; the Widow stared at her but said nothing.

"Answer me Widow or I will harm your precious Director"

"I was tired of all the mindless killing" the Widow spat out. Viper smirked at her,

"But it was not all mindless, was it? There were those that you took out without hesitation on your own accord." The Widow paled slightly,

"That's right; there were those two little girls who just happened to see you leave your targets home. You killed them without thinking. Then there was that old man who couldn't harm you in the slightest, yet you killed him too."

"You made me what I am, I had no choice in obeying your orders" Viper chuckled darkly,

"Widow, you're a monster in your own right, I didn't need to create it because it already existed" the Widow's face turned white.

"You will be punished for your disloyalty Widow. I'm having the machine brought over and an old friend of yours, Doctor Semenov, is here to visit you" there was no denying the fear in the Widow's eyes at those words.

"Oh yes, I told you I was taking you back Widow, you should listen to me more carefully in the future"

"Begin" she commanded.

Two men stepped up with whips in their hands and stood behind the hanging Widow. Another man stepped forwards and cut the top half of her catsuit off, leaving her in nothing but her bra and lower catsuit. The man stepped away and the two men uncoiled their whips. Viper turned towards Fury,

"Enjoy the show" she said with a cruel smile on her face before turning back towards the guards and giving them the nod. They began the punishment, over and over the CRACK of the whip was heard on her skin yet the Widow didn't make a sound. Fury watched in a mixture of horror and amazement as the Widow endured the pain without so much of a whimper. Five hundred lashes later, Viper held up her hand and the whipping ceased,

"I'm glad you haven't forgotten your lessons Widow" she commented as she walked around to survey the damage.

Coming back round she nodded to several other guards who came forward with what looked like cuffs with coils of wires attached; they fitted them around the Widows ankles before walking backwards again.

"Do you remember the cattle prod Widow?" she asked, the Widow nodded her head resigned to her fate,

"Good because this will be many times worse" the other end of the wire was found to be attached to a large box with switches.

"This little beauty holds a current of up to 100,000 volts of electricity. A step up from the 8000 you were used to during your time in the KGB." Viper walked over to the box and flip a switch; 100,000 volts coursed through the Widows body. Her back arched as the current swept through her yet did not utter a single sound of pain. Viper waited a full minute before turning it off. The Widow breathed deeply several times as swear poured off her body.

"Isn't she wonderful?" Viper cooed to Fury. Fury glared at her before returning his worried gaze onto his agent. Angry at being ignored, Viper flipped the switch again and once more electricity flooded her body. It was repeated twelve more times before Viper stopped it. Stepping closely Viper whispered,

"Do you want it to stop Widow? It can stop if you beg me to" the Widow focused her gaze firmly ahead of her. Viper sighed in disappointment,

"Very Well if you insist"

"You remember the branding irons don't you?" she asked as the door opened and two men walked in, both carrying white hot irons in there hands. Fury's eye widened but he kept his promise to his agent and did not say a word. The Widow stared at them with fear in her eyes. She was already in extreme pain and her pain tolerance was coming to an end.

"Do it" Viper commanded them; the two men instantly stepped close to the Widow and thrust the irons onto her skin. The Widow gasped as the pain began to get to her

Viper smiled triumphantly,

"You can stop this all Widow, if you give me information on SHIELD" Viper told her. Romanoff glared at her before risking a look at Fury. Fury stared back at her, shaking his head slightly. The Widow returned her gaze back onto Viper and said nothing.

"Widow, why do you insist on protecting the organisation who does not give a shit about you? They don't care whether you live or die and will certainly betray you eventually after you have outworn your usefulness to them." Still the Widow said nothing. Viper nodded to the men again and the Widow let out a small hiss of pain as the irons were placed somewhere else on her body. Viper turned towards Fury,

"You tell her Fury, tell her that SHIELD would much rather see her dead than one of their agents" Fury glared darkly at the woman before turning his attention onto the Widow,

"Romanoff, I'm sorry" he told her. Viper chuckled,

"You see Widow, he admits it. You are worthless to them, a piece of trash, nothing more"

"I will not betray them Viper" The Widow Spoke through gritted teeth as the irons were once more placed on her.

"Pray tell, why not?" asked Viper mockingly,

"Because Madame" she spat, "They actually understand the meaning of the words loyalty and honour. They treat me with respect, as an actual human being" Viper chuckled,

"You will soon see sense Widow"

"Continue" she called and the Iron rods were placed once more onto the Widow's skin. She refused to give in and Fury watched on in amazement, knowing that what Viper said was true; many people in SHIELD would rather shoot the Widow on the spot than accept her.

After an hour, Viper was getting bored,

"Continue until the Doctor gets here. I will return" as she walked through the door without a glance back at either of them. The men happily obliged and two even stepped forwards and began to whip her again at the same time. The Widow closed her eyes tightly, not daring to look at her boss as she was brutally tortured in front of him. Half an hour later she heard a sound of footsteps nearing the door, Doctor Semenov appeared. She stared at him in horror as he walked slowly towards her,

"My my, how good to see you again Widow. You were always my favourite patient to ah treat, I'm so glad to see you back here with us" he ran his hands over her body and smiled sadistically.

"Get her down and into the chair" he ordered the men. Forgetting what she said to Fury, the Widow began to fight back as soon as she was released. The chair was moved closer and soon the Widow was restrained tightly however she did manage to give one of the guards a black eye in the process.

"Now, now Widow, behave. We have guests" the Doctor smiled at Fury,

"You will be able to see how we get such obedience and loyalty from our agents, Director" Fury stared back at him and was hoping that Hill and SHIELD were on there way.

"Our main priorities are to rescue Director Fury and Agent Romanoff" Hill said to the small army of agents in front of her.

"Taking out Madame Rozalina is a secondary priority only. Is that understood?" she ordered. A chorus of 'yes Ma'am' answered her. One spiteful female agent spoke up,

"Excuse me Ma'am but why are we rescuing the Widow? I mean she probably was the one who betrayed us to her old bosses" a couple of voices offered their agreement.

"Agent Green is it?" Hill asked, the agent in question nodded,

"Firstly, Romanoff is an agent of SHIELD and we protect our own, secondly, she saved both mine and Fury's life and thirdly, I don't give a shit what you think. If you don't agree with this mission, hand me your badge and gun because I have no time to waste with an arrogant selfish child" she snapped. All the agents froze as they heard their normally cool headed boss snap. Green turned pale,

"No Ma'am, sorry Ma'am, won't happen again" she muttered. Hill glared at her for another moment before addressing the group at large,

"Alpha team you are with me, Strike team one and two, you go round the back exits and catch any you can. Team three and four you will storm the front with Alpha before spreading out to the top floors. Everyone know what they are doing?"

"Yes Ma'am" the group shouted.  
"Good, lets go" she ran, flanked with Barton and Coulson towards the facility where they had tracked their missing people. The teams moved into position swiftly and waited for the signal. She gave it and they converged.

Unaware that they were going to be stormed any minute, the Doctor placed the metallic helmet onto the Widows head and pressed a couple of keys into his keyboard.

"Almost home Widow, almost home" he whispered almost lovingly to her before he flicked one final switch and the Widow threw back her head and screamed. Fury looked on in horror as he watched the strongest person he knew get sucked back into her worst nightmare. The doctor was talking to himself, apparently annoyed because the programme was not giving the desired results. He walked over to her again and slapped her hard across the face,

"Stop fighting" he growled. The Widow paid no heed to him and continued to thwart the programming. It was agony, sheer agony yet she refused to give in. Refused to be turned back into the mindless assassin she used to be.

Suddenly the door banged open and Hill, Coulson and Barton came bursting in along with four other agents. They quickly shot down the doctor and all the guards in there before rushing over to their Director and her. She was still screaming as the programme continued to try and take her over. Barton rushed over the controls in an attempt to turn it off,  
"Which button?" he shouted desperately. Fury came stumbling over with Hill's help.

"I don't know" he replied. Hill growled in frustration,

"Stand aside" she snapped, the men realising what she planned to do, jumped out her way as she brought her gun up and shot the damn monitor four times. The Widow stopped screaming as soon as it was broken. Her breaths came hard and heavy as she shut her eyes. Coulson and Barton hurriedly untied the restraints and took the helmet off. They wrapped one of her arms around each of their shoulders and gently lifted her off the chair. The other agents hissed in sympathy as they saw the state of her back.

"Thank you" she whispered before her eyes closed again. Fury stepped closer to her,

"No, thank you Natalia" he whispered.

"Natasha. Not Natalia" she muttered before losing consciousness. Fury shook his head before following Hill out of the room and away from the facility.

"Did you find Madame Rozalina?" he asked her as he settled into the passenger side of her SUV. Hill nodded her head,  
"Yes, we captured her alive as she attempted to flee, you want to have first crack at her?" she offered. Fury shook his head as they drove off,

"No, that belongs to Romanoff"

She was still unconscious as she was rushed down the corridors on a gurney towards the medical wing. Barton and Coulson ran besides her, pushing the gurney themselves, determined not to leave her alone. Fury walked behind it with Hill besides him, both wearing worried expressions.

"Over here, quickly!" a doctor called out as they burst through the doors, the gurney was directed over to where the man stood next to a bed,

"One two three lift" he said as they unstrapped her and gently transferred her to the waiting bed where several other doctors converged on her and began hooking her up to heart monitors, drips and an oxygen mask.

"Vitals 120 over 40" one called out

"Burns and severe lacerations covering her back and stomach, we need antiseptic"

"Get an X-ray machine up here, we need to see what internal injuries she has" the first doctor ordered. The doctors raced around gathering up all the equipment they needed while Fury and company stood back and watched the activity.

"What do we deal with first?" one nurse asked the doctor in charge, "There are so many wounds"

"Start on the ones on her chest and stomach" he told her quietly. They worked quickly and efficiently for ten minutes, disinfecting the wounds and stitching the larger cuts closed.

"Er Doctor?" a nurse asked her tone coloured in disbelief. The Doctor hurried over to her and gasped at what he saw; there before them, the serum was doing its job and healing the cuts and burns at an accelerated rate.

"Get all the stitching you have made out now" he ordered his team, fully aware that this healing process will cover the stitching completely and make it impossible to get back out again and perhaps cause difficulties in the future. His team, baffled with the request obeyed anyway and soon the wounds were bleeding freely again for several minutes before they too started to heal.

The Doctor walked over towards where Fury and the others were standing,

"She's going to be just fine" he told them. Barton and Coulson sighed with relief while Hill and Fury nodded there heads, maintaining their professionalism.

"Did you know about her healing abilities?" the doctor asked curiously. Fury nodded,

"Yes, though it is not to become common knowledge. Also do not attempt to take her blood and run tests. It will end badly for you if you did" Fury warned. The Doctor nodded, understanding the threat implied.

"You can go and see her in five minutes, we're just going to take a look at her back to see how far along they have healed" the Doctor informed them before walking back over to the unconscious assassin.

Just as he got to her side, Natasha's eyes shot open. She looked around widely and began to lash out as she caught sight of the doctors. Striking one in the face with her fist, she attempted to get out of bed and away from the doctors who would hurt her. Her eyes were wild as they searched for an exit frantically, two orderlies rushed towards her, to try and subdue her but she was having none of it. A couple of swift punches later and they were lying at her feet in a crumbled heap,

"Romanoff" Fury called out. Her eyes focussed on the black cladded figure walking slowly towards her.

"Director?" Romanoff asked still confused. Fury nodded,

"Calm down, you're safe" he reassured her. She glared at him and then at the other doctors milling around the room.

"Get them out and don't let them anywhere near me" she told Fury, waving her hand at the white coats. Fury nodded,

"Hill, if you don't mind" Hill gave him a crisp nod before herding them out of the room.

The room fell silent after the doctors and nurses left the room, leaving only a wary assassin, Fury, Barton, Hill and Coulson in the room.

"How much do you remember?" Fury asked her cautiously. Romanoff stared at him and responded,

"Everything"

"You're healing abilities have been doing their job" Hill commented. Romanoff glanced down at her barely covered chest and grimaced,

"I guess the Red Room was good for something then" Barton took a step closer,

"Hey" he said, "You had a lot of us worried" Romanoff chuckled at that,

"I think people were worried about their Director rather than me Agent Barton, if they had their way I would still be there or dead" she responded. A short silence greeted her words as the other agents in the room inwardly shook their heads, knowing that what Romanoff had said was true.

"Right, talking can be done later, you Romanoff need some rest" Fury said. Romanoff raised an eyebrow,

"That an order?" she asked dangerously

"Yes" Fury replied simply. Romanoff glared at him and the other occupants tensed up, expecting a fight. Fury however just stared back knowing that if he wanted the Widow's respect, he needed to stand up to her.

Her glare changed into a small smile,

"Yes Sir" she responded. Fury nodded and left the room.

"Can't I get out of bed now?" Romanoff complained when Hill came to visit her. She had been stuck in her bed for twenty four hours and she was getting sick of it. Hill gave her a small smile,

"Sorry Romanoff, Fury told me you are not to get out of bed until the doctor gives you the all clear" Romanoff opened her mouth to protest but Hill quickly went on,

"He also said that if you try to protest, then I should tell you that it is now an order and not a request" her smile widened at the glare Romanoff shot her way.

"He's going to be a pain in my ass now isn't he?" she sighed.

"Yes, yes he is" Hill responded cheerfully.

"I can always disobey him" Romanoff mused to herself, Hill shot her a look,

"What? I've never disobeyed an order before. It will be an interesting experience" Romanoff told her innocently. Hill snorted,

"That's a good way to piss him off and be on storage duty for the next year" Romanoff shrugged,

"I'll live" Hill shook her head,

"You're going to be a handful aren't you" Romanoff grinned at her,

"You are only just figuring that out now Agent Hill?" Hill threw her hands in the air in mock despair. Romanoff turned serious,

"No but really, I will obey orders Hill. It's the least I can do after you saved me" Hill looked at her,

"Thank you" Romanoff told her quietly. Hill shook her head,

"I also need to thank you Natasha. You not only saved my life when you attacked the guards to distract them but you also stayed true to SHIELD when you refused to give up any information" Romanoff shrugged her shoulders,

"Its fine. No thanks necessary" she told her superior awkwardly. She didn't know how to deal with thanks or apologizes having never experienced either.

"SHIELD owes you a debt of gratitude Romanoff" Hill told her. Romanoff stared at her,

"It really doesn't" she replied. Hill shrugged her shoulders,

"Believe what you will. Oh and by the way, the Council is asking to speak with you" Hill told her as she got up.

"When?" Romanoff asked. Hill looked back,

"Two hours time" Romanoff nodded. Hill disappeared out the door leaving the Widow to ponder how the hell this meeting was going to go.

Natasha Romanoff, formerly known as Natalia Romanova stood waiting in the middle of the room before four large monitors. The Council was going to appear in exactly one minute and she was slightly nervous about why they wanted to meet with her; they after all had her life in their hands, literally. Fury had wanted to be in the room with her however the Council had made it clear that they wanted to speak with her alone. A beep was her only warning before the dark screens suddenly sprung into life and four shadowy figures appeared.

"Good evening Ms Romanoff" Councilman one began

"Good evening to you all as well Councilmen and woman" replied Romanoff as she gave them a small bow.

"We have been kept updated on your progress at SHIELD and I must say I have been impressed with your attitude, restraint and the information you have supplied us with" the third Councilman told her,

"Thank you Sir" Romanoff replied politely,

"Yes, yes you have done well so far however that's not to say you won't betray us in the future" the second Councilman spoke impatiently.

"I have no intention of betraying SHIELD sir" Romanoff informed them all quietly,

"Why should be trust your word Widow?" The same man spat. The other Council members remained silent apparently wanting to know the answer to the question as well; Romanoff looked at hands for a moment before looking back up at them,

"Because I have a lot of red in my ledger and SHIELD has given me an opportunity to wipe it out. I also owe SHIELD a debt which I will pay back no matter how long it takes me"

"What happens once your debt has been paid Ms Romanoff?" The Councilwoman asked,

"That is up to you all and Director Fury" she responded calmly.

"Does SHIELD hold your loyalty?" the first man asked,

"Yes Sir it does."

"How do we know that for sure? You could just be luring us into a false sense of security to attack us later on" the second councilman seemed intent on distrusting her and Romanoff rolled her eyes slightly,

"How would you have me prove my loyalty more than I already have?" she asked, not allowing any of the irritation she was feeling appear on her face.

"You are referring to your recent capture along with Director Fury I assume?" asked the third one. Romanoff nodded,  
"Yes Sir"

"Director Fury had given us the report and I believe that you are sincere when you say that you are loyal to SHIELD. Even agents who have been with us for years would not hold out under that amount of torture. You kept our secrets even when you had no reason to." Romanoff stared at them,

"It is my job to protect SHIELD in anyway I can, that includes keeping information away from those who want it."

"I believe you can be trusted to a certain extent Ms Romanoff, that is not to say I trust you completely but I think that SHIELD is safe from you at least" the councilwoman spoke. Romanoff dipped her head.

"I too believe you are trustworthy" the first councilman spoke,

"As do I" the third one agreed.

"I do not trust you yet I will abide by this council's decision" the second member told her. Romanoff nodded her head,

"What happens now" she asked.

"Welcome to SHIELD Agent Romanoff" the first Councilman told her. Romanoff smiled and bowed before the screens shut off again, leaving her alone once more.


	22. Chapter Twenty Two

Chapter Twenty- Two

"Come in" Fury called and the door to his office opened and Natasha Romanoff walked in. It had been two days since they had gotten back to SHIELD's headquarters after being captured by her insane ex-Master.

"You wanted to see me Sir?" she asked as she stopped before the desk. Fury looked up at her with his one eye,

"Yes I did. Please take a seat Agent Romanoff" he said as he gestured to one of the two seats situated on the other side of his desk. Romanoff complied and settled down before turning her attention back onto her new boss.

"How are you feeling Natasha?" he asked her quietly.

"I'm fully healed from my wounds Sir, is there a particular job you would like completed?" she replied. Fury shook his head,

"No Romanoff that is not what I meant and no, you won't be receiving any missions until you have completed your probationary period."

"Then what do you mean Sir?" she asked, slightly confused. Whenever someone had asked her that question in the past, it normally translated to 'are you healed enough to go back out?' even if she wasn't, she never dared to say no.

"Romanoff, what I mean is, how are you faring mentally not physically wise?" Fury clarified for her. She blinked at him as she considered the question,

"I'm fine Sir." She replied cautiously. Fury rolled his eye and gave up; apparently when she was in good physical shape it meant that she was good to go.

"Good. Romanoff, I called you in here for two reasons. The first reason is that I want to say thank you for saving my life for the second time as well as on behalf of SHIELD after you refused to betray the information you had no doubt collected during the weeks you were here" Romanoff shifted uncomfortably in her chair, she really did not like these situations.

"No thanks necessary Sir, I was just doing my job" she told him. Fury sighed in frustration,

"God dammit Romanoff, you allowed yourself to get brutally tortured so to spare me the pain and you don't think that deserves thanks?" Romanoff looked her boss in the eye and nodded,

"Yes Sir, it is what is expected of me"

"Natasha!" he growled, "No one expects you to put yourself through that for me or any other agent." Romanoff frowned at him,

"It is not a subordinate's job to protect their boss at all costs?" she sounded generally confused.

"You have had to do it before haven't you?" Fury realised suddenly. Romanoff nodded,

"Yes Sir, it was a tactic my old Masters in the Red Room as well as the KGB deployed to make certain of our loyalty" she sounded so causal as though stating that the weather was nice. Fury stared at her for a moment,

"Listen carefully Natasha" he said urgently, "That is not how we do things here. There is no need for you to allow yourself to go through something like that just so you can spare me some pain. Understood?" Romanoff nodded reluctantly,

"What if it was the only way to save your life?"

Fury stared at her for a moment,

"I hope you are never put in that position Romanoff, however if it does, I leave it up to you to determine whether or not you do so. It will be completely your choice." Romanoff nodded once more, apparently satisfied with that answer.

"Now second thing is: We captured Madame Rozalina alive during Hill's rescue." Romanoff inhaled sharply,

"What? She's here in this building?" Fury sighed and nodded,

"Yes. She is currently situated in the most secure cell on the detention level" Romanoff was silent for several moments before speaking again,

"What are you going to do with her?" she asked quietly. Fury studied her for a minute before answering,

"She has a lot of information that we need, however I do not think she will give it up willingly or under anything we can do to her. You on the other hand may be able to get her to talk" she stared at him,

"What would you have me do Sir?"

"Interrogate her and get the information by any means necessary" Fury replied, carefully his new agent's reaction. Romanoff's eyes widened slightly,

"If that is what you want Director, I will do it" she told him. Fury nodded and stood up,

"Follow me then, I will show you where the ruthless bitch is" Romanoff stood up as well and trailed after him thinking hard. On the one hand, she was happy to be able to have the chance to hurt the woman who had caused her so much pain, yet on the other she could not help but feel fear because it was Madame Viper and she could cause her psychological pain.

She followed him down the corridor and into a large glass lift,

"Detention level, authorisation Director Fury, Level 10" he called as soon as they entered,

"Authorisation code granted." The computerised voice replied as the door closed again. Romanoff lifted an eyebrow and looked at the boss,

"How long does it take to reach level 10?" she asked. Fury looked at her,

"Planning to stick around for a while?" he counter acted. Romanoff smirked,

"Why not? I have no place else to go and besides I still owe SHIELD a debt" Fury rolled his eye at the debt thing but didn't bother to try and convince her that that was not how they did things around here.

"Reaching level 10 will take a long time no matter who it is, however if you are especially skilled it will take less time that the average agent" he told her. Romanoff nodded to show that she had understood.

"Detention level reached" the computerised voice came again as the lift came to a stop and the doors opened. Fury stepped out and she followed. They came to the last door on the floor and she was not surprised to see four agents standing guard outside.

"Stand out here for a minute Romanoff; I'll call you when I want you to enter" Fury told her.

"Yes Sir" Romanoff replied and stood off to one side.

"Open the door" Fury ordered one of them. The agent obeyed instantly and punched in the code. Romanoff was impressed with his reaction, it reminded her of her days in the Red Room; the agent would have done well if he was there. The door slid open and Fury walked in quickly followed by two of the guards.

"Director Fury, what a surprise" Viper said as she looked up from the table she was currently sitting at. Fury said nothing as he sat down opposite and his agents flanked him.

"Madame Rozalina." He greeted curtly.

"Why do I have the pleasure of your company?" she asked with an air of boredom,

"You have information; information that SHIELD wants that could help us save others"

"Fury, I may have information however why should I tell you"

"You should tell us willingly otherwise things are going to get very messy in her" Fury stated. Viper laughed harshly,

"Torture? Fury there is nothing you can do that would make me tell you anything." She leaned back in her chair, feeling rather smug. Fury smiled viciously,

"Ah yes, what my agents can do probably won't help loosen you tongue however one of your agents probably could" the smug smile on Viper's face was wiped off with those words,

"You wouldn't. You would never trust her enough" she told him, Fury's smile got wider,

"That's the thing, I do trust her and she obeys my orders now" he informed her.

"This is a legal organisation therefore you cannot use torture" Viper told him, fear forming in her pit as she realised what exactly this trip entails. She knew that the Widow would be more than happy to inflict pain on her and she knew exactly how well trained the Widow was in that particular skill.

"No one is going to find out" Fury reassured her. "Agent, please ask Agent Romanoff to step in" he asked one of his agents flanking him. The agent nodded and stepped towards the door. As soon as the door slid open, Romanoff stepped in, her face a cold, hard slate.

"You know what to do?" Fury asked her as he stood up. Romanoff nodded,

"Yes Sir" she replied her voice cold as ice, Fury stepped towards the door,

"I'll leave you be then. Just remember: try not to kill her"

"Yes Sir" came the response.

"Rozalina, if at any point you feel like you have had enough, please inform agent Romanoff and I'm sure she will stop as long as you give us the information we require." With that he left the room, the other agents following.

Romanoff stared at the door for a moment before turning her attention onto Viper,

"Let's get started shall we?"


	23. Chapter Twenty Three

Chapter Twenty- Three

Previously…

"You know what to do?" Fury asked her as he stood up. Romanoff nodded,

"Yes Sir" she replied, Fury stepped towards the door,

"I'll leave you be then. Just remember: don't kill her"

"Yes Sir" came the response.

"Rozalina, if at any point you feel like you have had enough, please inform agent Romanoff and I'm sure she will stop as long as you give us the information we require." With that he left the room, the other agents following.

Romanoff stared at the door for a moment before turning her attention onto Viper,  
"Let's get started shall we?"

Viper glared at her former student as the Widow stared down at her, her face set in stone with the exception of a cold smile. Oh yes the Widow was going to enjoy this and she made a mental note to thank Fury for the opportunity later.

"So what's it going to be then Widow?" Viper attempted to sneer, "Broken bones, drowning, whipping?" Widow raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Viper started to get nervous; she was so used to the Widow obeying her that it was a disconcerting experience to have her remain silent.

"Tell me what Fury wants to know and you won't have to experience any of those" she finally spoke.

"You would give up a chance to get back at me if Fury ordered it?" Viper asked disbelieving. Romanoff worked her jaw for a moment before gritting out,  
"Yes" Viper looked shocked for a moment,

"I guess I really did train you well" Romanoff glared at her before reaching across the table and grabbing one of Vipers hands. Slamming on the table, she took one of the fingers before systematically breaking it in four different places. Viper gasped in pain and glared up at Romanoff and was met will icy eyes. A shiver ran involuntary down her spine as the Widow took hold of the second finger and broke that in the same way.

"Now tell me what I want to know" she demanded

"Go to hell!" Viper yelled back, breathing heavily through the pain. Romanoff smiled and leaned forwards,

"I already have Viper and have no desire to do so again" before breaking the third and four finger in quick succession.

Ten minutes later…

Viper was on the floor gasping for breath as she attempted to shield her mangled hands from an enraged Romanoff. Romanoff was staring down at her with a look of deep loathing and disgust as she brought her foot down and slammed into Vipers left ankle. A loud crack was heard as the bones broke, causing Viper to scream. Romanoff brought her foot down again and again until the ankle bones was nothing more than grounded dust.

"Going to give up yet or do I have to destroy the other one?" she taunted her former master, she was secretly enjoying every second of this and was hoping the woman refused to give in.

"Haven't beaten me that easily Widow" Viper spat between hard fought breaths. Romanoff merely tilted her head slightly and began to destroy the other ankle in the exact way as last time.

Thirty minutes in and Romanoff was getting frustrated, although she did not show it. Grabbing Viper by the hair, she dragged the woman back to her chair and dumped her on it. Pulling out one of her knives, the Widow viciously yanked her hair so that Vipers head was facing the ceiling and her,

"I'm getting bored Viper, tell me what Fury wants to know otherwise I will start cutting off non vital body parts" Viper looked at her torturer and saw that Romanoff was deadly serious however unfortunately for her, the logical part of her brain had gone out the window at that moment and so she said nothing. After a few moments of silence, Romanoff grabbed one of her arms and dragged in over the edge of the table. Viper realised what she was about to the do and tried to stop the Widow but it was too late; Romanoff raised her hunting knife and brought it down with all her strength. The arm was severed just below the elbow and Viper screamed her head off. Quickly Romanoff poured the rubbing alcohol which had been supplied to her by her request over the wound- which had Viper screaming even more loudly- before quickly wiping the wound with a cloth before cauterizing it with a lighter to stop the bleeding before tying off the end. Not giving Viper a chance to recover beyond that point, she grabbed her other arm and made to amputate it in the same way,

"STOP!" Viper screamed in horror at Romanoff. The Widow held off with the knife and raised an eyebrow,

"What was that Viper?" she asked

"I give in. I'll answer any questions you or Fury has, just stop" she spoke in a rush. Romanoff looked disappointed as she reluctantly lowered the knife, it was only the respect and loyalty she had for Fury which stayed her hand to disregard her orders and amputate her other arm anyway.

"I'm disappointed that you gave in so quickly Viper, I cannot now torture you anymore" she said sadly before turning towards the door to give Fury the good/ bad news depending on how you looked at it.

Outside the door the agents were looking at each other nervously as they heard yet another scream pierce through the air. Fury stared at his agents and smiled inwardly at their reactions,

"Um sir? Shouldn't we make sure that the Widow is not killing our prisoner" one asked. Fury chuckled slightly,

"Relax Agent Walker, Agent Romanoff has everything well in hand and will not kill Madame Rozalina" the agent nodded but hesitantly opened his mouth again,

"How are you so sure sir?" he asked quietly. Fury glared at him, getting annoyed

"Because Agent, I told her not to" he replied simply but with an edge in his tone which suggested that it would not be wise to continue this line of questioning. Silence fell for several minutes before another scream was heard from within. This scream was different, it was much louder than any previous ones they had heard. The agents flinched at the sheer agony the scream projected and eyed the stoic figure that was Director Fury. A shout of STOP from within made one side of his lip curl up slightly. 'Won't be long now' he told himself. That turned out to be true a few minutes later when the door suddenly opened and Romanoff walked out calmly. Her hands and cat suit was covered in blood and there was a gleam in her eyes which showed him just how much satisfaction she had gotten from torturing her tormentor of decades.

"Director Fury" her tone was respectful as she inclined her head to her superior, "Madame Rozalina would like to talk to you" she spoke as though she had come to a business arrangement and not just spent the last half an hour torturing the hell out of the woman. Fury nodded once before following Romanoff back into the room.

The first thing Fury saw when he entered the room was a severed arm laying on the floor and Viper lying next to it. Apparently she had tried to reach it however her legs gave out from under her.

"Agent Romanoff?" he asked her, turning his gaze on his new agent

"Yes Sir?" she responded calmly.

"What happened in here?"

"I broke her Sir"

"Well yes I can see that Romanoff" he paused for a moment before speaking again "Is she fit for questioning?" Romanoff sneered at the woman lying before her,

"Yes Sir" Fury looked at her hard, he knew that whether or not Viper truly was up for it, Romanoff would see to it that his questions were answered.

"Get her into the chair than" he ordered her. Romanoff immediately stalked over to her former master and dragged her brutally over to the chair once more by the hair and dumped in the chair. Viper was whimpering the entire time as even Fury inwardly flinched at the callous approach the Widow took. Fury took the seat opposite and gestured for Romanoff to join him on his side of the table. She reluctantly obeyed and moved around until she was standing to the right just behind his chair.

"Right Viper unless you want me to unleash the Widow on you again, and trust me I think she is just waiting for that particular order, I suggest you give me every piece of information you know, that includes names, addresses, bank codes and everything else." Viper looked at Fury through half closed eyes before transferring her gaze to Romanoff who was glaring icily at her and also flipping her knife and catching it again behind her bosses back. She flinched and turned back to Fury before opening her mouth and all her secrets and information that she knew came tumbling out. Fury recorded everything as he listened intently.

Finally five hours later, the information fountain grounded to a stop and Viper closed her mouth and eyes, completely exhausted from the day she had experienced. Fury glanced at her and then at Romanoff who had not moved at inch since it began,

"Do you think that was everything?" he asked her. Romanoff shrugged,

"Yes Sir, Viper knows better than to keep information from me"

Viper's eyes snapped back open at that and she nodded frantically, agreeing desperately with the Widow. Gone was the cool, taunting woman from that morning, she had been replaced by a nervous wreck. Fury gazed at them both, scrutinizing their reactions to his question.

"Very well." He stood up and began to make his way to the door.

"Sir!" Romanoff called

Fury turned back around with an eyebrow raised. She lowered her eyes to the floor for a moment before taking a deep breath and meeting her boss's gaze. She was still not comfortable about asking questions or asking anything of her superiors yet she needed to do this.

"Yes Agent Romanoff?" Fury asked, a hint of annoyance in his tone. He was not annoyed at her for stopping him, rather it was because he had hoped she was past the whole not allowed to ask questions thing. She set her shoulders and spoke,

"Since Viper has given all the information she can provide, I would like to request your permission to kill her" Fury was shocked for a minute, all the things he thought she was going to ask that was not one of them. 'Still, it is one that makes sense' he thought.

"You are asking for permission to kill one of my prisoners?" he asked slowly. He wanted to see how she would react if he answered in the negative.

"Yes Sir" she responded, her eyes fixed on his. He saw the effort it took her to ignore the instinct to look at the ground.

"I see. Would you obey me if I told you that permission has been denied?" he asked her carefully. Fury saw the internal struggle playing inside her, he saw how desperately she wanted to kill Madame Viper yet he also saw that she wanted to uphold her promise and obey him. She came to a decision,

"If you deny me your permission to kill her, I will obey Sir" she responded quietly. Fury searched her for any sign of deceit, finding none he was happy enough to give her what she wanted.

"Very well. Permission granted" Romanoff's eyes widened slightly in response before not one second later she drew one of her guns from its holster and brutally shot Viper between the eyes. The gun was returned to its place and she began to move towards the door, she stopped when she came level with him,

"Thank you Sir" she told him quietly. Fury nodded his head to acknowledge the thanks.

"May I be dismissed?" she asked.

"Yes. Be in my office in three hours" it was an order and she knew it. She nodded sharply with a "Yes sir" as she walked back out of the room and made her way to her own quarters to clean up.

Natasha knocked on her boss's office door exactly three hours later and waited until he yelled at her to enter before walking in.

"Director Fury" she greeted the man respectfully as she stood before his desk, giving him a slight bow.

"Agent Romanoff. Have a seat" he told her curtly. Natasha settled down on one of the two chairs in front of his desk before turning her attention back on to Fury. Fury studied the woman before him silently as Natasha sat still and straight with her eyes focussed on the spot just above Fury's eye patch. She figured it a good compromise as she was neither looking at the floor nor in her boss's eyes. Fury groaned internally as he saw what she was doing but decided to leave it for now.

"Romanoff, the Council was very impressed with your ability to collect information" he started. Natasha inwardly snorted at his phrasing; her collecting skills were better known 'as extremely painful'. She simply nodded and waited for him to continue.

"They want me to put you on several criminals' cases to see if you could yield more promising results than the agents previously assigned. The problem with that however is that you have not completed your probationary period nor to do I trust you in those situations." Natasha fixed him with an icy glare before sighing,

"Then what are your orders Sir?"

Fury leaned forward rested his chin in his hands,

"My orders Agent Romanoff are simple; you will complete three months of your probationary period with Agent Hill. You will obey her every order even if said order is ridiculous or cruel. I'm not going to sugar coat it; Hill will be doing everything in her power to make your life a living hell for the next three months. If you manage to get through the months without losing your temper and obeying all orders, I will assign you to several of these cases for you to have a crack at. Is that understood?"

"Yes Sir, I understand" Natasha responded after a moment, she understood that the next three months were not going to be pleasant for her however she reasoned that it would nothing compared to the Red Room Academy.

"Do you have any questions before I dismiss you?" Fury asked. Natasha looked at him before looking away again and opened her mouth,

"Is Agent Hill being permitted to use torture as a method of 'encouragement' Sir?" she asked quietly. Fury blinked before answering carefully,

"Natasha look at me" her gaze instantly shot up to meet his, "here at SHIELD we do not use torture on our agents other than specific and carefully controlled blocks where the agent has the choice whether or not to go through it to build up their resistance in case they get captured. Does that answer your question?"

Natasha nodded looking slightly relieved,

"Yes Sir"

"Good. Any more questions?" she shook her head. "Very well. Report to Agent Hill tomorrow morning in training room three at 0400. You're dismissed."

"Yes sir" she responded as she stood up and made her way out of the room. The next three months were going to interesting to say the least.


	24. Chapter Twenty Four

Chapter Twenty- Four

Natasha Romanoff walked into her designated training room at 0330 the next morning ready to face whatever her superior threw at her. She knew she was early, however from experience she had learnt it was better for her health that way. Placing her towel and water bottle on the bench provided, she made her way to the middle of the room and began to carefully stretch her muscles. At 0350 she heard footsteps in the corridor and waited until Agent Hill walked through the door towards her before rising gracefully to her feet and bowing at the waist in respect. Holding the bow for several seconds, she straightened up and stood to attention, waiting for her first order.

Agent Hill walked into the room and was slightly surprised on seeing her subordinate already there. When Romanoff bowed, she had to resist the urge to roll her eyes at the gesture. She knew it was instinct for Natasha to greet her superiors this way however it was not something she agreed with considering how much more skilled the assassin was compared to her.

"I'm glad to see you are able to get here on time Natalia" she deliberately used her real name in an attempt to get a rise out of the assassin. Natasha remained still, not one muscle moved as she stared at a spot just above Hill's head.

"How long have you been in here recruit?" Hill refused to call her agent by any title or name which would show respect as either an agent or a skilled assassin/spy.

"Since 0330 Ma'am" Romanoff responded promptly and calmly. Hill realized that it was going to take a lot for her to even get a hint of a reaction from the spy standing in front of her.

"Since you appear to enjoy getting her so early, you can began running laps around the training room at 0300 every morning until I arrive understood?" Hill knew she was being cruel, yet this was exactly what Fury wanted; he wanted to see how far they could push the woman and truth to be told she wanted to know as well.

"Yes Ma'am" was all the response she got.

Hill studied her agent closely for a few before abruptly shouting out her first order,

"Five hundred push ups. NOW" Natasha instantly obeyed and dropped to the floor and began to pump out the required number. Forty minutes later Romanoff was finished and she swiftly got back onto her feet before standing back at attention. Her breathing had not changed at all. Hill had to admit, she was impressed. Not only for the feat itself but Natasha's reaction time in responding to the order, not that she showed just how impressed she was on her face. Instead she simply called out another order,

"One thousand sit ups then run to the silver bar" once more Romanoff dropped down and obeyed without question.

Natasha knew she was in deep shit as soon as the first order came out of Hill's mouth; from that moment on wards she knew that she was in for something a kin to hell. If the all the training was going to be this demanding, she could actually compare it with the one she followed at the Red Room and later the KGB except for the torture. Despite this, she could not help her respect for the woman rise. If it was anyone else they probably would be well on their way to loathing Hill however, she had been trained to respect those she feared and those who treated her harshly. It was sad yet that was how she had lived most of her life and she didn't question that it was wrong at all. Truth be told, if they wanted get a reaction out of her, all they needed to do was change their tactics and treat her nicely, like a human being rather than an animal. In that situation she would be off guard and confused as it would be something she had never experienced it before.

Her thousand sit ups down in record time, she jogged quickly over to the sliver bar standing just below two meters from the ground. Turning swiftly around to face Hill who had followed her, she waited for the order. Hill was inwardly annoyed and slightly in awe at the display the woman had put on. She had half been hoping that the Romanoff would have given some indication of annoyance after what she had put her through, most of the agents at SHEILD would not have been able to complete even half of the numbers she had put Romanoff through in the time it had taken the woman to compete her orders.

"Pull ups. Six hundred" she told the woman coldly. Once more she was treated to the sight of the Widow effortlessly pull herself up and begin without hesitation. She was quickly coming to the conclusion that she needed to push the assassin harder if she wanted to counter act the effects of the serum running through Romanoff's veins.

Six hundred pull ups later and Romanoff was beginning to get tired, she still had a long way to go before she was exhausted but still she had to give it to Hill to actually even manage to get her tired.

"Rings" Hill told her curtly and together they walked over towards the two rings hanging by chains from the ceiling. The Rings were big enough to fit a grown man's hand yet was two meters above the ground.

"Get up there and hold the rings level with your stomach" Romanoff obeyed and pulled herself off the ground.

"You will remain up there until I say otherwise" Hill ordered coldly.

"Yes Ma'am" Romanoff replied. She distinctly remembered Viper doing the exact same thing to her in the beginning.

Hill was morbidly curious to how see how long Romanoff could hold herself up for. Fury had passed on most of her normal duties onto Coulson and Sitwell so she could spend a longer period of time per day making Romanoff's a nightmare. Three hours went by and Romanoff's arms were beginning to shake with exertion, sweat poured off her body and she was finding it harder to breathe. Hill was extremely impressed yet was unaffected of the suffering she was putting the young (old?) woman through.

"Do the Splits so your legs are on par with the rings level" she called up. Natasha bit back a hiss off pain as she obeyed, leveling her legs straight with the rings. She did not know how long she could keep this up considering the new level of difficulty she had just entered. Hill continued to watch on in silence as time went by.

Eventually another three hours in Romanoff felt that she could not hold herself up any longer. Her entire body was trembling as she forced herself to endure; her breaths now came in gasps as a shooting pain travelled through her body at every breath she took. Finally having had enough and ignoring the prideful part of her, she shot a pleading glance at Hill. Hill was stunned. She knew everyone else would have given up within the first hour and yet the Widow had managed to last up to six. She caught the look her agent was giving her and smirked,

"Do you want to come down Recruit? Can't you take a little pain?" she taunted the woman coldly. Natasha knew exactly what she was doing but couldn't bring herself to care, she knew the conditions of the three months was her to keep her temper in check and obey all orders, there was nothing said about pleading with the instructor. Gritting her teeth and she took the risk of making it worse she replied,

"Yes Ma'am." Hill cocked her head to the side,

"Was that an affirmative to coming down or an agreement that you can't take the pain?" Romanoff hesitated. She was in a dangerous dilemma; either come down and take the taunting and/ or punishment for being 'weak' or staying up there to prove she can take it yet risk disobeying her orders to stay up there if she fell. Bowing her head and closing her eyes she decided that the risk of her being punished would be too high since in the state she was in currently, she would most likely fail.

"I meant that I could take the pain Ma'am" she spoke quietly trying to conserve her strength for however long she was forced to stay up there for.

Hill was impressed; she knew what kind of thoughts must have been running through the Widows head as she gave her ultimatum. She knew that Romanoff could not last much longer as she stared at the obviously exhausted woman and yet she knew that Natasha would stay up there until she literally dropped or she was given the order to get down. Suddenly a vicious thought entered her brain. She knew that if she gave this order, she was going passed the line of cruelty and into the torture league. Shrugging slightly, she had not gotten where she was by being a coward or faint hearted.

"I want you to do a perfect straight handstand. If you manage that, I may or may not let you down after"

She caught the brief horrified look that passed on Natasha's face as she took in the order. 'Not even Viper made me do that!' the thought passed through her head a second after the order hit her. Jerking her head slightly to show she had understood, Romanoff slowly began to lift her body up so that she was vertically balanced on the rings. Hisses of pain escaped her mouth as she put even more weight on her arms. Her arms shook heavily as she brought her legs together again, her feet pointed towards the ceiling.

Hill left her like that for another twenty minutes until finally taking pity on the woman commanded her to return to her starting position. She heard a gasp of agony as Romanoff obeyed and she finally realized that she had crossed the Widows thresh hold of pain tolerance. She knew roughly the amount of pain Romanoff was in and shuddered inwardly as she realized that she would not have been able to survive even a quarter of the amount of time she had forced Natasha to stay up there.

"Enough. You may get down" she commanded coolly. She inwardly winced as Natasha collapsed to the ground as soon as her feet touched the floor. She heard a pained whimper pass the spy's lips as the said spy dragged herself so that she was on her knees and not laying on the floor.

Natasha was sincerely grateful as she was given the order to drop to the ground. Every muscle in her body as well as her bones screamed at her in agony and she prayed to whatever God was out there that that was the end for now. Dragging herself on to her knees and staring up at her superior officers almost destroyed whatever strength she had left. She cursed herself as an involuntary whimper of pain left her lips; she hated herself at that moment and could not believe how weak she was.

Hill was truthfully feeling awful about how she was treating Romanoff yet she knew this was the only way to get an accurate reading on her reactions to SHIELD.

"You have one hour to rest and eat something before we are back in here. Is that understood?" she told the woman on floor coldly. Natasha bowed her head in response. Hill taking that as a sign of affirmation began to walk out of the room before she turned but around,

"Oh and Recruit?" she waited until she got a confirmation,

"Yes Ma'am?" Natasha croaked quietly. Hill smirked,

"You will sit and talk to your fellow agents when you eat each meal. Agent Barton does not count and will not be talking or visiting you at all until these three months are over. Is that clear?"

Romanoff's shoulders slumped slightly at those words. It was bad enough she could not see Barton, whom see was beginning to tolerate however now she had to talk to other agents as well! She inwardly growled at her situation but knew if she dared step one toe out of line, she would not be allowed to forget about it in a hurry.

"Crystal Ma'am" she responded dejected. Hill smirked as she turned back towards the doors and walked through. She now knew one of the ways to get under her agents skin.

Natasha dragged herself to her feet and staggered towards the changing rooms and the showers as soon as Hill left. If she only had an hour, she was going to make the most of it. Thirty minutes later she was walking slowly into the canteen, a hand pressed lightly to her right side. Every step was agony but she endured. Like always. The other agents in the room stopped talking and stared at her as she walked towards the food. They wondered what the hell had happened to make THE Black Widow of all people actually show weakness to them all. Romanoff ignored them as got her food before analyzing the room. Seeing that there was a table occupied by only two other agents, she headed over there and settled down. The agents looked shocked and slightly fearful as the world's deadliest assassin sat down with them.

"Hi" she said as she began to eat her salad. They were stunned even more so when she actually began to converse with them.

"Hi?" one stuttered. Natasha looked at him and then at the other agent before she sighed,

"Listen, this is just as awkward for me as it is for you. Trust me."

"Then why are you here and talking?" the second one asked rudely. Natasha raised an eyebrow,

"Because Agent Hill ordered me to" she replied simply. They blinked at her.

"I see. I take it she was the one who made you walk at a snail pace?" the first one asked. Natasha nodded,

"Yeah, I've been with her since four o'clock this morning. Training" she grimaced as she spoke the last word. The agents at the table were once again stunned into silence,

"But that means you have been with her for over eight hours!" the second one protested. Natasha gave him a grim look.

"I know. And I'm due back in the training room in eighteen minutes" the agents shivered in sympathy. Everyone knew how harsh Hill could be however she never kept anyone longer than three hours at a time.

"Good Luck" the second one said. Natasha nodded curtly,

"Thanks. Something tells me I'm going to need it"

Hill knocked on the door to Fury's office before walking in without waiting for a response. As Fury's second in command, she was the only one allowed to get away with it; anyone else who dared would soon be found scrubbing every single bathroom with a tooth brush.

"Ah Hill, how's the probationary period going?" Fury asked as soon as the door closed behind Hill.

"She's doing well. I have really pushed her to her limits yet not one complaint was heard from her. She obeys all my instruction instantly and to the letter. However at one point she did try to silently plead with me to end her torment" Fury raised an eyebrow at that.

"What did you do?" Hill smirked,

"I gave her an ultimatum. Either to stop or admit she couldn't handle a little pain" Fury matched her smirk,

"Let me guess, she did neither and remained where she was" Hill nodded.

"I also believe I know of a way to get under her skin" Fury leaned forward interested,

"I told her that she had to converse and sit with the other agent save from Barton when she eats her meals. I believe that she is distinctively uncomfortable about talking to others or even being around them unless they are her superior officers." Fury nodded, a look of concentration on his face,

"And what do you suggest we do to take advantage of this?" Hill's smirk took on an evil turn,

"Simple, I am simply going to order her to talk to every agent she comes across as well as throw in several different agents into a couple of her training sessions with me from time to time. That shall catch her off guard since she would not know when they would be coming. It will also be beneficial if we can get her to overhear several agents insult her and yet her not been able to do anything about it." Fury chuckled softly,

"Very well. Keep up the good work Hill and give me informed if the situation changes. Hill nodded and stood up from her chair.

"Yes Sir" she replied before exiting the room and making her way back to the training room.

Hill was already waiting in the training room when Natasha walked in.

"You're late" she told the woman curtly. In fact Natasha was five minutes early, yet Hill was determined to be as cruel and unfair as possible. She waited for any reaction from the Widow; Natasha simply bowed her head slightly, excepting the statement before standing to attention. She cursed inwardly as once again Natasha remained as stoic as that morning,

"As punishment you can run an extra fifteen laps around the tracks down the hall. Follow me" with that she strode out of the room. Hill didn't bother to look over her shoulder to check that her recruit was following since it was obvious that she would be. Natasha followed her superior into a large track room; one lap she guessed was the equivalent of one mile exactly. Turning to face her student Hill spoke to her coldly,

"Seventy five. Start."

Romanoff immediately jogged over to the starting line and took off at a fast jog. Hill watched as she fell into a comfortable rhythm and wondered if there was anything she could do to the woman that would actually make her verbally plead to stop. She knew that no matter what she did to the Widow, Natasha would never resort to begging. After the tenth lap and no sign of tiredness she snapped,

"Faster" Natasha instantly obeyed and sped up until she was running at high speed. Inwardly Natasha was cursing Hill with every swear word she knew in at least twelve different languages, she knew that come the sixtieth or seventieth lap she was going to collapse from exhaustion, she knew her limits and adding to what she had endured earlier; she was going to be a shit load of pain as well as near unconsciousness thanks to the speed she was going at. Her jogging speed, she knew she could keep up easily for one hundred laps however the speed now, it was an equivalent to an Olympic sprinter. Hill was watching and waiting until her recruit stopped, she knew it would only be a matter of time, after all no one could handle that pace for a long period of time, serum or no serum.

Hill was surprised when at the fiftieth mark Natasha was still going, her breathing, she noticed was becoming harsher yet still she pressed on. 'She's remarkable' she thought to herself as she continued to watch. Hill simply thought that Natasha would stop running when she had reached her limits; she never thought for one second that Natasha would keep running regardless if she could carry on or not until she literally collapsed. And that is what happened.

Natasha reached the sixty-ninth lap before her legs finally gave out from under her and she dropped to the ground with a thud. Hill stared for a moment, her eyes widening in shock before rushing over to her student. Romanoff was lying on the floor gasping loudly for the breath that refused to enter her lungs, all her focus was on trying to stay awake. She could not afford to lose consciousness, last time that happened she had not awoken for several days and her old Masters had not been pleased with her weakness.

"Natasha!" Hill shouted as she dropped onto her knees next to the Widow. Hill saw the struggle her student was having trying to stay awake,

"Don't close your eyes Romanoff" she ordered, "Stay awake!" she felt horrible not just for pushing her to this state of exhaustion but also ordering her in her obviously weakened state, yet she knew no other way in which to keep the woman's eyes open.

"Try to calm down, gasping for breath will not help your lungs get any" Romanoff shot her a withering glare, 'seriously, did Hill think she was not trying to do exactly that' Hill caught the gaze and realized what a stupid statement that was,

"Right sorry"

Romanoff rolled her eyes before slowly pushing herself onto her hands and knees, it was easier to breathe from this position she had found from experience. Hill looked at her nervously, she clearly saw her arms and legs shaking violently from the effort yet she did not dare interfere. Ten minutes later, Natasha got something resembling control over her breathing and she felt that she was in no more danger from passing out. Glancing at her superior officer, she got to her feet slowly; she staggered once she was up and almost fell once more if it had not been for Hill catching her. Hill pulled one of Natasha's arms around her shoulders and supported the woman as they both moved slowly towards the door, Natasha kept her second arm pressed firmly on her stomach, all the while focusing on her breathing and walking.

Hill took her back to her quarters and watched as her student collapsed onto the bed as soon as she reached it. Natasha looked up at Hill with exhausted yet accepting eyes; Hill was confused, 'why the hell was she looking at her like that?' Natasha answered that a few seconds later,

"I failed my orders Ma'am. I'll accept whatever punishment you deem fit to give me" her voice was quiet yet emotionless. Hill's eyes widened in shock, 'she actually thinks she's going to be punished for this!?' Hill opened her mouth to speak but closed it a second later when nothing came out, 'what the hell did those monsters do to her to make her so accepting of punishment? Doesn't she know that it was not her fault? Speaking of which, how many times had this situation happened to her?' she thought furiously. Shaking her head, she eventually opened her mouth again to speak,

"Romanoff why the heck would I punish you for something like this?" she asked, Natasha frowned,

"Because I failed" she replied as though it was obvious. Hill had to admit she was correct however it was not her fault,

"It could not exactly be helped" she replied dryly, "I refuse to punish you Romanoff, if you don't like it, tough. Suck it up. I pushed you too far, you and I both know that" Natasha stared at the woman for a moment but shrugging slightly,

"You're the boss. Whatever you say" Hill was once more stunned at how accepting she was, any other agent would have complained loudly at the treatment and probably taken action against her, 'Yet she's not the average agent' a niggling voice in her head whispered to her.

"Get some sleep Romanoff. Will you be alright tomorrow?" she asked

"Yes Ma'am" came the reply without hesitation. Hill looked at her,

"You're not just saying that right?" she asked. Natasha shook her head slightly,

"No Ma'am" Hill nodded her head once more before leaving the room. Natasha fell asleep as soon as the door closed behind her.

"Fury we need to talk" Hill spoke as she walked into his office. Fury raised an eyebrow,

"About what Agent Hill?" he asked calmly

"Agent Romanoff"

"And what about her?" Hill looked uncomfortable as she answered,

"She's currently sleeping off intense exhaustion, I er may have pushed her too hard" Fury cocked his head slightly,

"And what exactly did you do?

"I had her run seventy five miles after this morning's eight hours long training session" she replied sheepishly "however she collapsed after number sixty nine"

"Hill, I know I said to be as cruel as possible to get a rise out of her, I did not mean drive her to the edge of complete exhaustion. I do not want a dead assassin on my hands."

"Yes Sir, I'll try not to push her so hard again" Fury nodded apparently satisfied,

"Was that all?" Hill shook her head,

"Actually no… she revealed some rather unpleasant information about her life before us. Unintentional of course" she stopped and looked at her boss to continue, he nodded and she did. She relayed the conversation she had just had with the unfortunate agent.

At length she had finished and silence fell only to be broken several minutes later,

"Her unquestioning attitude towards pain, punishment and torture is annoying and highly disturbing" Fury spoke, resting his chin on his hands,

"I want you to try and break her out of the habit of expecting any of those three when it comes to us and our orders." Hill nodded,

"That's not going to be easy, she has been conditioned like that for most of her life" Hill commented. Fury sighed,

"I know. But it's the only thing we can do to help her" Hill said nothing but she silently agreed with her boss. It was going to be a long road for both her and Romanoff but she vowed to herself that no matter how long it took, she was going to succeed and help the assassin turned agent any way she could.


	25. Chapter Twenty Five

Chapter Twenty- Five

Previously…

"Natasha!" Hill shouted as she dropped onto her knees next to the Widow. Hill saw the struggle her student was having trying to stay awake,

"Don't close your eyes Romanoff" she ordered, "Stay awake!" she felt horrible not just for pushing her to this state of exhaustion but also ordering her in her obviously weakened state, yet she knew no other way in which to keep the woman's eyes open.

"Her unquestioning attitude towards pain, punishment and torture is annoying and highly disturbing" Fury spoke, resting his chin on his hands,

"I want you to try and break her out of the habit of expecting any of those three when it comes to us and our orders." Hill nodded,

"That's not going to be easy, she has been conditioned like that for most of her life" Hill commented.

Two month later…

"Romanoff!" Hill snapped as she saw the woman about to turn the corner down the corridor, Natasha stopped moving instantly and spun round to face her superior office,

"Ma'am?" she responded. Her face remained blank as Hill approached her,

"Where are you heading Recruit?" she questioned coldly,

"To my Quarters Ma'am" she replied instantly. Natasha had gotten used to the random questions Hill threw at her and always told the truth.

"I thought I told you to be in the training room ready for our next session" Hill told her sharply, in fact she had told her no such thing however she continued to push her recruit as far as she could to get a rise out of her.

"Yes Ma'am. Sorry ma'am" Romanoff replied with a short bow, "May I be dismissed?" she asked politely. Hill nodded before spinning around and walking back the way she came growling inwardly as she did so. Natasha rolled her eyes at her boss's antics before turning back round and heading towards the training room as ordered.

"Agent Barton will be joining us today. You are to treat him in the same manner as you treat me. Is that understood?" Hill asked as she walked into the room and came to a stop in front of her recruit. Natasha stood at attention and nodded her head sharply,

"Yes Ma'am. Understood." She knew exactly what Hill was playing at; by making her act like a subordinate, she was effectively destroying any familiar relationship that had formed between them.

"One thousand pushups. Start." Hill ordered. At once Romanoff dropped to the ground and began pumping out the required number. Barton walked in just as she was finishing and saw how she immediately stood once more at attention.

"Agent Hill. Natasha" he greeted the two with a wide grin on his face.

"Agent Barton" Hill returned the greetings before glancing at Natasha as if warning her. Natasha got the message and responded with a slight bow,

"Sir"

Barton frowned,

"Come on Tasha, we're friends no need for the whole 'sir' thing" he said, waving his hand dismissively.

"Sir, you are my superior therefore the correct address is needed sir" she responded, her voice flat and cold. Barton opened his mouth to object however Hill beat him to it,

"Agent Barton, what the recruit said was correct therefore end of discussion" her tone leaving no room for argument. He looked oddly at her before fixing his gaze back onto the woman he hoped was still at least luke warm towards him.

"Righttt" he dragged out the word, clearly unaware of what was going on.

"Agent Barton, you will be assisting me in her training session today. Any orders you give her will be obeyed without question, won't they Recruit?" she asked Natasha

"Yes Ma'am" Natasha replied instantly.

Barton looked uncomfortable at what he was been asked to do however he knew better than to question Hill in front of other agents.

"Recruit, begin working your way round the equipment in the room; spend thirty minutes at each post. Understood?"

"Yes Ma'am" Natasha responded coldly before hurrying off to obey.

"Agent Barton." Hill spoke as she watched him watch Natasha. Barton snapped his attention back onto his superior officer,

"What the hell Hill?" he demanded angrily

"We need to find out how much we can trust the Widow Barton. Because of that, Fury has ordered me to make her life a living hell for the past two months and to figure out how far we can push her before she snaps. She knows that she has to obey any and all orders I give her without question and without losing her temper once." Hill calmly informed him.

"What have I got to do with it?" he asked, still angry at her. Hill looked at him,

"You are another trigger for her, you are the only one that has been allowed anywhere near close to her therefore you treating her like an inferior may have an effect upon her" Barton rolled his eyes,

"Close!? Seriously? Just because I'm the only one who can talk to her without getting punched does not mean I will have any effect on her."

This time, Hill was the one who rolled her eyes,

"My point exactly you are the only one. Now. Whilst you are here, you can only address her by recruit or Natalia. You are to speak coldly and indifferently whenever you speak to her and you are to insult her whenever you get the chance understood?" she ordered. Barton nodded stiffly.

"Is that why she did not react to the agents last month?" Hill nodded,

"Yes. She was ordered to not react or attack even if other agents insulted her"

Flashback

Natasha walked into her normal training room at 0300 as ordered by Hill when she saw that there were already eight other agents there. She inwardly sighed as she realized that today was yet another day where she had to put up with and train with other agents. Needless to say she hated it.

"Hey look who it is" one of the agents started as he caught sight of her, "It's the flaming pixie" several chuckles accompanied the words as the other agents joined in,

"Why are you still here Pixie, haven't you realized yet that no one wants you here?"

"Yeah why don't you be a good little soldier and off yourself and save everyone else the pain of your company" another taunted.

Natasha curled her hands into fists as the ridicule continued; if she had a choice, every single one of them would be on the floor in various amount of pain or perhaps dead already however Hill had ordered her on the second day of training that she was to ignore and not react to the other agents even if they attacked or ridiculed her like today. One of the more cocky agents swaggered over to her. The majority of the agents were pretending to be horrible however there was always one who didn't care and wanted to see her suffer.

"Look, if mummy and daddy didn't want you and killed themselves to get away from you why would you think that anyone else would and could put up with you?"he taunted as he stood right in front of her. Natasha dug her nails into her palms until blood was drawn however did not respond. The agent got annoyed at being ignored and backhanded her across the face,

"Hey! I'm talking to you" he spat in her face. Natasha slowly move her neck so she was facing him again, her features blank save for a spark of fury in her eyes. This time he landed a hard punch in the stomach. She tensed slightly but gave no sign that it hurt or that she had even been hit in the first place. Growling he punched her again, she jumped back to avoid his fist however did not retaliate.

"Hey Tom, what the hell man? Leave her alone" another agent yelled at him as he jumped in between the pissed off agent and Natasha. The agent, Tom, simply shoved him aside before stalking forwards. Natasha tried to get herself under control as she watched him approach.

"Think you're tough huh?" he snarled as he grabbed her round the throat and slammed her into the wall,

"Think you're better than us just because you've murdered innocents?" he tightened his grip while smashing his other fist into her stomach,

"Cause let me tell you something, you're not. You're nothing!" he punctuated each word with a punch. She gasped for breath as her supply was cut off. Several cracks sounded in the room as he continued to deliver the punches. The other agents snapped out of their horror and ran forward before dragging an enraged Tom off a badly injured Natasha. Natasha sank to the ground on her hands and knees, gasping desperately for breath all the while ignoring the pain from the ribs and trying to control her anger. Two agents stepped up to help her however she violently shook her head as she lifted her head up,

"GET OUT" she roared before slamming her eyes shut and breathing harshly. She staggered to her feet as the other agents slowly backed away, they could clearly see the rage burning in her eyes as she glared at them.

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?"

Hill had arrived. Natasha immediately snapped her attention to her angry superior who was stalking into the room. Her breathing was still fast and harsh as she flicked her glare back and forth between the group of petrified agents and Hill. Once more her hands were curled into fists and she was shaking with the exertion as she prevented her instincts from taking over.

" We.. we-" stuttered one of the agents. Hill raised an eyebrow at him,

"You what?" she hissed at him, she turned a concerned eye to her recruit and clearly saw her struggle to remain calm.

"Recruit." She snapped, Natasha turned her glare onto Hill, "Leave the room and wait outside until I call for you" she ordered harshly. Natasha nodded her head stiffly and staggered out the door however not before throwing an 'I am going to kill you' glare at the agents. Hill watched her leave before turning her angry gaze back onto the agents,

"So what was it that you did?" she asked them quietly.

The guy who first tried to stop Tom spoke up,

"At the beginning we were just obeying your orders and insulted her. she did not rise to the bait and remained silent, Tom however, was not satisfied and continued to taunt her, when he did not get the action he wanted he backhanded her across the face" he stopped when Hill glare turned murderous.

"You did what?" she practically snarled at Tom. Tom shrunk back as his face turned pale,

"Continue!" she barked at the agent. (Matthews)

Agent Matthews opened his mouth and did as she ordered,

"After Tom backhanded her, he continued to insult her and her parents when she refused to react. He got so pissed that he punched her in the stomach, once again she gave no reaction and so he went to punch her again, this time she jumped back to avoid it however did not retaliate." He faltered again as Hill took a step forwards, Tom took a couple of steps back before trying to hide behind him fellow agents, Hill waved her hand impatiently for Matthews to finish his report,

"Well after she jumped out of the way, he got so enraged that he grabbed her by her throat and shoved her into the wall. He started to choke her while he continued to punch her. The rest of us were startled out of our frozen states when we heard the sound of bones cracking. We quickly ran forward and yanked him off her. Romanoff fell to the ground breathing hard; Agents Cameron and Davis attempted to help her up however she yelled for us to get out before staggering to her feet. We started to back away once we saw how furious she was. Then you came in." he finished lamely.

Hill glared at them all for a minute,

"Agent Richards I want to see you in my office in five minutes, if I were you I would leave now" she spoke through gritted teeth. Tom took off running.

"The rest of you can leave and come back tomorrow instead for the training session. Tell Romanoff to come back in when you see her" the agents all gave her quick nods before hurrying out of the room. Thirty seconds later and the door opened once more and Natasha walked in slowly.

"Ma'am" she greeted quietly, giving Hill a small bow

"Recruit" Hill greeted her back, "Well done on keeping your temper. How are your injuries?" Natasha smirked slightly, "they're healing. They will be fully healed within the next ten minutes" Hill nodded,

"Good. Next time you are attacked unprovoked you have permission to defend yourself." Natasha's smirk became full blown,

"ONLY to defend yourself. No harsh injuries on your attackers, understood?" Natasha nodded,

"Perfectly"

"Looks likes she finished" Barton commented as Natasha dropped to the ground from where she had been hanging from the rings. Hill nodded and together they made their way over to where she was waiting for them. Natasha instantly stood to attention as they approached,

"Recruit!" Barton snapped coldly, inwardly regretting what he had to do

"Sir?" she replied cautiously,

"Did we not say thirty minutes on each piece of equipment?" he asked coldly, nervously she nodded her head,

"Why then did you only hang up there for twenty?" he demanded, lying through his teeth. Hill looked at him approvingly,

"Apologizes Sir, I have no excuse" Natasha replied tonelessly as she stared at the ground. She knew for a fact that she had spent thirty minutes on every piece of equipment as ordered and she knew that this was just another tactic to try and get her to blow up.

"At least you can be honest" Barton told her gruffly, "As punishment you can get back up there and hang for one hour. Understood?"

"Yes Sir" she replied with a nod before jumping back up onto the rings and pulling herself level.

"Well done" Hill muttered in his ear as they both observed Natasha.

"Does she ever react to anything you say or do?" he whispered back

"No" Hill replied annoyed, "You can see why I'm getting frustrated and being cruel" Barton just nodded, if the rumors were anywhere near the truth that he had been hearing for the last two months about these session he was incredibly impressed with Romanoff's patience and control.

One hour later…

"Get down!" barked Barton. At once Natasha dropped to the ground and stood there waiting for her next orders.

"We are going to spar, all three of us" he told her with a cruel smile on his face.

"The rules however are that you are only allowed to dodge our attacks. If you defend yourself beyond that or lash out you will be doing ten thousand pushups. Is that anyway unclear?" he growled. He inwardly winced at what he was doing to her however he knew that if anything was going to break her calm it was deliberately preventing her from attacking constantly.

"No Sir" she replied through gritted teeth.

Hill and Barton began to circle her as Natasha eyed them warily. Hill went first and threw a flurry of punches; Natasha ducked, dodged and weaved through them all however she failed to prevent Barton's from hitting her. She stumbled back slightly from a blow from the back and she spun round just in time to dodge the barrage of blows raining down from that direction. Natasha's eyes widened as realized she had no hope of getting out of this unscathed and so began to move faster and faster in an effort to dodge the blows from both Hill and Barton. Thirty minutes later and she was getting tired, she felt several bruises forming across her body from punches she had failed to dodge. Hill threw a partially fast punch at her head which she ducked under however she failed to realize the kick aimed at her stomach from Barton until it was too late. Natasha went flying through the air only to slam against the back wall and then onto the floor with a muffled thud. Barton had badly miscalculated the force he had put into the kick.

"Shit" Natasha muttered to herself as she gingerly picked herself off the floor before facing her two superior officers who were hurrying over to her. Placing a hand gently over her ribs, she winced as she felt at least four ribs cracked and two broken.

"Recruit" Barton snapped. Natasha instantly looked at them while wiping any trace of emotion from her face.

"Are you injured?" he asked, she hesitated not knowing if it was a trick question.

"Just a couple of broken ribs Sir, nothing to worry about. Are we to continue Sir?" she asked tonelessly. Barton could not help his mouth hanging open at her dismissive reply. Hill, seeing that Barton was not in any shape to respond stepped in,

"No Recruit. Go to medical to make sure your ribs have not punctured anything" she ordered. Romanoff stiffened at that. She did not like the medical wing, everyone knew that, especially Hill. She opened her mouth before quickly shutting it, reminding herself that she had to obey all orders.

"Something the matter?" Hill asked emotionlessly, the fact that Natasha hated the medical facility having honestly slipped her mind. Natasha quickly shook her head,

"No Ma'am" she reluctantly walked out of the room and to the medical wing. Natasha promised herself that one day she was going to get even with everyone who insulted, attacked and sent her to medical one of these days.

"Barton!" snapped Hill when she saw him still in shock. Barton blinked.

"How…?" he trailed off, "How can she be so causal about those sort of injuries, especially during a training session?" he asked weakly.

"Because she has been trained to take it Barton" Hill answered tiredly, "My guess is that she has had worse. Much worse"

"Wait! Hill where did you send her?" he asked, suddenly alarmed.

"Medical why?" Hill asked puzzled. Barton looked at her as though she had gone insane,

"Hill, why did you send an angry, injured Black Widow into the one place she hates above all else?" he asked her quietly.

Hill's face paled as she realized what she had done,

"Shit" she swore, "Let's go"

She took off running with Barton close behind.

Natasha was in an incredibly bad mood. Not only had she been suffering injustice after injustice for the last two months but she was injured and was now being forced to spend time in the one place where she would rather die than be. Currently she was walking into the doorway where she was suddenly rushed by at least half a dozen doctors. She closed her eyes and counted to ten in Swahili to calm down,

"If you value your life all but one of you will leave me alone now" just as quickly as they came, most of them left. She opened her eyes and saw a nervous looking junior doctor looking at her.

"Right Doctor, I'm only here because agent Hill ordered it. I currently have four fractured ribs and two broken ones; don't worry they will heal on their own, however I need to know whether they have punctured anything. So can you do that?" she told him crisply.

The doctor nodded quickly before gesturing over to a bed in the far corner of the room. She nodded stiffly before walking over to it and lying down. The doctor grabbed a portable x ray machine and began the procedure. Five minutes later the doctor handed her the x rays, quickly she scanned them and found thankfully that nothing had been punctured. Swinging her legs back over the edge of the bed she nodded her thanks to the doctor before striding over towards the exit. However as soon as she got there she was knocked over by two panting agents who were running full tilt to the entrance. Natasha grunted as her ribs were dangerously hit when she landed and she steadily got back to her feet ready to unleash her fury onto the idiots who dared run into her when she was already injured; her orders be damned. Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, the two agents were in face Hill and Barton. Hurriedly she hid her anger behind a blank mask and gave the superior agents a small bow,

"Ma'am, Sir. Can I help you with anything?" she asked politely. Hill and Barton looked at her, then at the state of the medical room before looking at each other,

"No Recruit, you may head back to your quarters" Hill answered smoothly.

"Yes Ma'am" replied Natasha calmly before walking out the door. After Barton was sure she was gone and out of hearing asked the room at large,

"Right, is anyone hurt?" Hill just stood there shaking her head while the other doctors looked at them with confusion. After getting confirmation from them that none of them were injured by the Widow he turned towards Hill,

"This is going to be a long month isn't it?"

"You have no idea, Agent Barton" replied Hill tiredly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well thats what i have got up to so far. working on next chapter


	26. Chapter Twenty six

Chapter Twenty Six

The last month of the three month probationary period had been hell for Natasha. That was not an exaggeration in the slightest. She was forced to work and train faster and harder and longer than ever before, that is not even mentioning the taunting and ‘punishments’ she had had to put up with. But she did. It was official; the Black Widow had overcome everything ‘Hardass Hill’ could throw at her and still was standing tall. That was until the last day. 

“Recruit!” barked Hill as she walked into her student’s quarters at one o’clock in the morning. Natasha immediately stood to attention as she realized there was no threat to her in the room.  
“Ma’am” she stated coldly, acknowledging her superior officer.  
“Follow me” Hill instructed sinisterly as she spun on her heels and marched back out the open doorway. Natasha immediately followed suit, ignoring the fact that she was only dressed in a tank top and loose fitting pajamas bottoms. Hill led her recruit down several corridors before instead of heading to the training room as normal but into one of the interrogation rooms. Opening the door, she gestured for the student to enter before walking in herself and shutting the door.  
“Sit” Hill commanded coldly, gesturing towards one of the chairs. Natasha complied instantly and took a seat, suddenly nervous. Hill took the chair opposite hers and sat there staring at her student in complete silence for several minutes.  
“This is your last day of your probationary period” she stated coldly. Natasha remained still as no answer was needed.  
“Do you know why I have asked you in here?” she asked. Natasha shook her head,  
“No ma’am”  
Hill smirked,   
“I thought that this would be a good time to get some honest answers from you Natalia” Natasha tensed slightly but gave no other reaction,  
“What would you like to know ma’am?” she asked quietly, inwardly she was hoping that nothing too personal would come up.  
“Why don’t we start off with something easy? How old are you truly?” Natasha paled slightly at that, only Fury knew that and he promised to never speak of it. Hill watched her reaction and knew at last she was going to get a response, an honest one; well she would have to wait and see. She knew whatever she was told would stay between her and Fury and would never be mentioned in any reports officially or not.   
“Seventy one” she replied, her voice barely louder than a whisper. Hill was shocked,  
“Seventy one?” she repeated numbly. Natasha nodded,  
“Who else knows?” Hill asked,  
“Just Fury, you, me and my old masters” she responded automatically, her voice emotionless.

“Alright. Another question then, when did you start training?” she was curious about her students early life, yet she promised herself that since this was an abuse of her power, she was not going to inquire about everything. After all everyone has the right to secrecy.  
“I was four I believe.” Hill’s eyes widened in disbelief,  
“What happened to your parents?”  
“They died” she replied shortly. Hill wisely chose to move on,  
“What was your training like?”  
“Brutal”  
“I want a proper answer!” Hill snapped, slamming her hand on the table. Natasha stared at her coolly,  
“If I made a mistake, disobeyed an order, was late, talked to the others etc etc I was punished”  
“How?” Hill asked, leaning in. Natasha gave her a bitter smile,  
“It was different each time. My first punishment was one hundred and ninety lashes with a whip” Hill looked horrified,  
“What was the crime?” Natasha paused,  
“I failed to hide my emotions. I was four years old and I was punished for being tired after training for eight hours straight” Hill went pale.  
“How?” Natasha was puzzled,  
“How what?” she replied,  
“How did you survive?” Natasha smiled coldly; it sent shivers through Hill and answered,  
“I learned”

“How many people have you killed?” Natasha frowned,  
“Does that mean targets, the other recruits, civilians, witnesses and agents altogether?  
“Altogether first” Hill responded cautiously, Natasha shrugged,  
“Seven maybe eight thousand? Don’t know an actual number” Hill went pale again,  
“That many?” she croaked. Natasha nodded,  
“It was my job agent Hill, if I was ordered to kill someone, I did it. No questions asked”  
“Have you killed any SHIELD agents during this time?” Natasha shifted slightly in her seat,  
“Yes” she responded quietly, not liking where the questions were going.  
“Number?” Hill asked, morbidly curious,  
“Ninety five”  
“Shit!” Hill hissed, her eyes narrowed, “when was the last time you killed an agent of SHIELD?” Natasha grimaced,  
“Do you remember the man hunt for SHIELD agents roughly eighteen years ago? Twenty four of the best agents were hunted down and killed?”   
“It is not something one forgets. You were involved in that?”  
“I was the one responsible for ALL their deaths” Natasha informed her calmly  
“You what?” Hill spoke aghast   
“I killed all twenty four of SHIELD’s top agents within six months”  
“And do you feel remorse for killing them?” Hill questioned in a cold voice.  
“Of course!” Natasha snapped angrily, “you think I would be here if I didn’t!?” she demanded her superior officer. Hill narrowed her eyes,  
“Be careful Natalia, wouldn’t want to lose your temper now would you?” Natasha breathed deeply, inwardly cursing her momentary loss of control,  
“Forgive me” Hill studied her for a moment before nodding, apparently satisfied that she was indeed sorry.   
“How many were civilians and innocents?”  
“At least three thousand” Natasha responded quietly. Hill stared at her in utter shock,  
“You have a lot of blood on your hands” Hill stated coldly, Natasha winced visibly,  
“I know” she whispered softly. Silence fell in the room for several long moments; Natasha stared at the table, unable to look at her superior in the eye. Memories of her work flashed to the front of her mind, she closed her eyes and shook her head slightly, in an attempt to get rid of them.  
“Are you alright?” Hill asked, concerned for the mental state of her agent,  
“Fine.” Came the instant reply, Natasha’s eyes snapped back open and landed on Hill, “Anything else you would like to know ma’am?”  
“Yes actually” Hill said, she leaned forwards, “Why are you here Natalia? What do you hope to gain?”

Natasha was quiet for several minutes, ‘what did she want?’ she thought,  
“I want… a chance. I’m not expecting redemption or even forgiveness, yet I want a chance to attempt to make up at least a small percentage of my crimes” Hill stared at her for a minute; privately thinking that if what Natasha was saying true, that there may be hope for her yet.  
“Here at SHIELD Natasha” Natasha blinked when she heard herself being addressed by her chosen name for the first time in months, “you will get that chance, but only if you truly want to change. Do I have your promise Natasha? Do I have your word that you will give this chance everything you have and will never ever turn against either SHIELD or go back on your word?” Hill asked, leaning forward. A tense silence filled the room as she waited for Natasha’s response. Natasha looked at Hill, her face deadly serious,  
“You have my word Agent Hill. I swear that I will not screw up this chance. I swear that I will never turn against SHIELD willingly. And I further swear to you that you can trust me. SHIELD has my loyalty Agent Hill and I don’t give it easily”

“So. Has she passed the test?” Fury asked his second in command from where he sat behind his desk. Hill stood straight on the opposite side. She nodded her head,  
“Yes sir. Nothing I did to her during the last three months gave any big reaction, if any reaction at all. The closest I got was her snapping briefly this morning when I interrogated her, and even that was brief and she apologized instantly.” Fury was silent for several minutes, he considered everything he knew about the last three months as well as the information Natasha had truthfully revealed.  
“Do you trust her?” he asked finally. Hill considered the question carefully before nodding,  
“Yes I do. At least…” she hesitated, Fury motioned for her to continue, “I think she can be trusted until we give her a reason not to. Like she said, she does not trust nor give her loyalty easily and so the fact that she is willingly giving it to us shows how serious she is.” Fury nodded,  
“I agree. Let’s just hope we never give her a reason not to trust us. I have a feeling we would be in a very dangerous situation if that ever happens” Hill silently prayed that that situation never came to pass, she actually liked living and would not like it to be cut short by a pissed off Black Widow.  
“I want you to go and collect our resident assassin, it’s time we told her the good news.”  
“Yes sir” Hill responded before walking to the door,  
“Oh and Hill?” Hill stopped and looked back,  
“Get Coulson as well, I believe he is going to be taking over as her handler yes?” Hill nodded,  
“Yes sir, I’ve been away from my duties long enough” Fury nodded in agreement before Hill walked out of the room.

“Romanoff!” Hill shouted from the doorway as she watched Natasha take down eighteen SHIELD agents with ease. Immediately Natasha stopped fighting and turned towards the voice,  
“Yes ma’am?” she responded with a small bow before standing at attention. Hill opened her mouth to talk but before she got the chance, one of the fallen agents decided to use this distraction as an excellent chance to fell the unbeatable Black Widow.   
“Arghhhh!” the agent let out a frustrated cry as he aimed a punch at Natasha’s head. Moving with impossible speed, Natasha spun round, caught the punch with one hand before twisting it behind the unfortunate agents back, all the while kicking one of his legs out from under him. She leaned in so her lips were near his ear,  
“Unless you don’t want to be sent to an early grave, I suggest you don’t try that again” the agent paled drastically. Natasha sent a glance over into Hill’s direction. Hill just crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. She sighed before reluctantly releasing the agent and stepping over him towards where Hill stood.  
“You didn’t harm him” Hill stated as they both existed the gym and started to walk. Natasha shrugged,  
“I figured like the last three months, I was forbidden from attacking back” Hill chuckled,  
“What was it you said to him that made his lose all color?” she asked, Natasha gave her a cold smile,  
“I simply informed him that trying that again would result in an early death” Hill glanced at her side ways,  
“Romanoff, what have I said about killing SHIELD agents?” Natasha sighed,  
“I’m not allowed” Hill smirked,  
“Good”  
“So where exactly are we going?” Natasha asked  
“Fury wants to see you” Hill replied  
“Oh. I’m assuming that asking ‘why’ would not get an answer?”   
“Indeed.”

They continued walking down numerous corridors in silence before they got to Fury’s office. Hill knocked on the door and waited until she was given permission to enter before walking in; Natasha one step behind her. Fury was sitting behind his desk as usual while Coulson stood off to the side.  
“Good you’re both here” he stated.   
“Director” Natasha greeted him with a small bow.  
“Sir” Hill simply stated  
“Romanoff sit” Fury ordered, Natasha instantly complied and sat on the edge of the chair offered. Hill stood slightly behind her chair.  
“Do you know why I have called you here Romanoff?” Natasha shook her head slightly,  
“No sir”  
“This is your review meeting to determine how well you have done during your probationary period and to determine if you passed or failed.” Silence fell in the room whilst Fury studied his newest agent.  
“Tell me Romanoff, how do you think you have done?” Natasha blinked in surprise at the question, during her years at the Red Room and the KGB, never once was her opinion asked for,  
“I think I did an adequate job sir” she replied cautiously. Fury and Hill both snorted in disbelief,  
“You did better than ‘adequate’ Romanoff” Fury retorted. Natasha nodded uneasily,  
“Thank you Sir” she replied uncertainly.   
“Romanoff, you exceeded all expectations that either I or the World Security Council had. Congratulations you are being shipped to a secure location at 0700 tomorrow morning, there you will be gathering information from particularly closed mouth prisoners. Do you accept?”   
Romanoff looked at him in silence for a few seconds before a small smile made its way on her lips,  
“Yes Sir” Fury nodded his head in approval.  
“Good. Now do you remember Agent Coulson?”   
Natasha nodded again,  
“Yes Sir”   
“Agent Coulson will be taking over from Agent Hill as your handler” Coulson stepped forward and offered a hand,  
“Agent Romanoff, a pleasure” he stated, a small smile on his lips. Natasha took the offered hand,  
“Sir.”  
“Coulson will be coming with you on your mission, therefore he will be your direct superior. The only other people who have more authority than you where you are going are the council members themselves. Yes you will meet them in person, they requested it.”  
“Yes Sir” she responded, Natasha had no problem with authority figures, unless they were trying to kill her that is.  
“Excellent. Well then agent that is it for tonight. I wish you luck. You’re dismissed” Fury told her. Natasha stood up,  
“Director. Ma’am. Sir” she stated before leaving the office.

“Try not to let her kill anyone Coulson” Fury stated.  
“I’ll do my best sir” he replied seriously  
“Then good luck”  
“Thank you, good night Director, Agent Hill” he nodded to both before following his new agent out the door.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Natasha continued to gaze out the window like she had been doing for the past four hours as Coulson sat opposite her reading a news paper. Coulson frowned as he looked over the top and saw that his newest agent hadn’t moved a muscle since sitting down at the start of the journey,  
“Romanoff” he watched as her gaze instantly snapped to his,  
“Sir?” she asked, her voice holding no emotion  
“What are you thinking about?”   
“Nothing important sir” she answered evasively. His frown deepened,  
“Are you worried about your face to face meeting with the council?” Natasha had to smile at that,  
“With respect sir, no, if the council wanted me dead then I would already be so therefore I have nothing to worry about.”  
“I see. Then what is it that has preoccupied your mind since we started this journey?” he persisted. She arched an eyebrow,  
“Persistent aren’t you?” Coulson just stared at her, waiting for an answer. She sighed,  
“I was thinking about previous situations that are eerily similar to what I’m going to do”   
“Want to talk about it?” he asked, she almost snorted at that,  
“With respect sir, no” he shrugged,  
“Okay, but if you need to, I’m here” she stared at him for a moment before mumbling under her breath ‘Americans’ with a shake of her head,  
“Have a problem with that?” he asked slightly amused, over hearing her comment. Natasha straightened up,  
“No sir, not at all”   
“Then why the comment?” she shrugged her shoulders slightly,  
“I’m am unused to being cared for or listened to yet suddenly that it all I am confronted with since being brought here to SHIELD”  
“Ah I see. Well then Natasha there is something you need to understand” he paused for a moment, “As your handler it is my duty to make sure that you are okay, if that means there is something bothering you I will do my best to help you be that mentally, emotionally or physically. Do you understand what I am saying?” he asked her gently.   
Natasha nodded her head,  
“Yes sir I understand. Thank you” she gave him a small smile before returning her gaze out the window. Coulson gave a smile of his own,  
“You’re welcome” he replied softly before returning his gaze back to his newspaper.

 

“Agent Coulson, Agent Romanoff; welcome to The Diamond” one of the four agents greeted them as they stepped of the quinjet.  
“Thank you Agent Banks, does the Council want to meet Agent Romanoff straight away?” he inquired,  
“Yes Sir, the Council is waiting in conference room zero. Agent Parks and Rain will lead the way”  
“Thank you” replied Coulson before gesturing for the agents to do just that, Natasha followed her handler without a word.  
“Nervous Agent Romanoff?” asked Parks as he and his partner lead the guests down the hallways,  
“No” she replied shortly,  
“Really?” he responded surprised  
“Yes”  
“Most every agent is a least shaking in their boots the first time they meet the Council face to face, hell some even twice or more”  
“I’m not most people”  
“No” he responded after a short pause, “I suppose you aren’t”   
They stopped at a set of with a plaque stating ‘Conference Room Zero’,  
“Good Luck Agent Romanoff” Parks told her as he stepped aside, “Sir” he added with a nod towards Coulson before both agents walked backed down the corridor.  
“Ready Agent?” asked Coulson, Natasha breathed deeply and straightened up,  
“Ready Sir” he nodded once before raising his hand and knocked. A crisp ‘enter’ came from within and together they entered.

“Agent Coulson, Agent Romanoff; good to see you so promptly” one councilmen said,  
“Council members” Coulson greeted them  
“Agent Coulson, this is a meeting with Agent Romanoff, please leave and wait outside” another informed him. Coulson sent a nervous glance at the stoic agent by his side before nodding once and leaving the room.  
“Council members” Romanoff greeted them with a short bow as the door closed behind her handler” she straightened back up and remained still as they analyzed her.  
“Agent Romanoff, I think I speak for us all when I say that we are extremely impressed by your dedication since you have joined SHIELD. Not only have you provided more intel than we have gained on the KGB in fifty years but you have also protected SHIELD and Director Fury with cost to yourself. That it not including what you have went through the last three months to prove to us that you can it fact be trusted for what we have planned for you here at the Diamond” the Council woman informed her.  
“Thank you ma’am” Natasha responded quietly.  
“Yes yes she has done well for now, but you cannot deny that she is dangerous and a risk to us all!” the third council man in the room snapped. Romanoff mentally rolled her eyes and was not the only one who did,  
“Give it a rest Samuel! For god’s sake, we are ALL dangerous and if she wasn’t then this whole situation would be non-existent” Council man one snapped back  
“Excuse me for looking after our safety, I unlike do not want to be stabbed in the back by a so called ex assassin!”  
“I wouldn’t go through all that effort, I would simply shoot you” Natasha muttered darkly under breath, the Council woman hid a smile behind her hand; she was the only one who heard.  
“Agent Romanoff, your thoughts?” she asked. Natasha stared at her for a moment before answering,  
“Ma’am, I truly do not know what else I can do to prove that I am not planning to turn against SHIELD or stab them in the back. If there is any way I can do so then I will gladly do so”  
“Well said” she said approvingly, “Well Samuel is there any way she can?”   
“You know damn well Katrina that there is no way which is more than what she has done already” Samuel admitted grudgingly  
“Well then with that sorted out, shall we inform agent Romanoff what we want her to do?” the second councilman asked, getting slightly impatient with the argument.  
“Of course Malik” Samuel grumbled.  
“Good. So Agent Romanoff, have you been informed of the nature of your work here with us?” Malik asked. Natasha nodded,  
“Yes Sir, Director Fury informed me that there are several criminals that are being less than forthcoming. He said that I might have better luck”  
“Indeed. Understand Agent Romanoff that whilst you are doing this, that there must be no permanent damage nor must any of these interrogations end in deaths. Is that clear?”  
“Crystal Sir” she responded her face a blank slate.   
“Excellent. Keep in mind that we will be keeping track on your work. Take the stairs going downwards at the end of the corridor and enter the first room on your right for your first assignment” Malik informed her. Natasha nodded sharply,  
“Before you go Romanoff, know that if I feel that you are betraying us, I will personally kill you” Samuel threatened, albeit not very well” she once again mentally rolled her eyes,  
“Of course Sir, I’ll keep that in mind.” Samuel grunted, happy that his threat was taken seriously.  
“You are dismissed Agent Romanoff” Katrina informed her. Natasha bowed shallowly before exiting the room.

Agent Coulson was waiting outside the room for her when she exited the room,  
“How was it?” was the first thing out of his mouth, his cool unruffled exterior nowhere to be seen.   
“It went well, all things considered Sir” she answered neutrally. She started walking towards the first interrogation room  
“Meaning?”  
“Meaning that the majority of the Council, much to my astonishment, seems to like me” Coulson raised an eyebrow at that,  
“Majority?”  
“Yes, it seems that Council Member Samuel cannot go two minutes without airing his opinion that I cannot be trusted and should be killed” her voice showing none of her irritation.  
“Indeed?”  
“Unfortunately.” There was a pause.  
“Well you can’t please everyone”  
“I think I’ve pissed off more people in my life than please them”  
“Well that goes without saying”  
“Granted I’ve probably killed more people than please them” another pause  
“That’s not very encouraging Romanoff” she shrugged  
“I have not killed anyone in three months. That encouraging” she offered,  
“That is only because you have been directly ordered to do just that” he reminded her  
“True but still, it shows it can be done” He eyed her,  
“You are looking forward to this assignment aren’t you?”  
“Why do you say that?” she evaded the question,  
“You have a gleam in your eye that I don’t like”  
“Well you can’t please everyone” she threw back at him. Coulson’s eye twitched.  
“Indeed?”  
“Quite”  
“You are going to be a handful aren’t you?” They had arrived, she stopped at the door and turned to face her handler,  
“Now why do you think that?” she gave him her first genuine small smile, before slipping into the room and shutting the door behind her” Coulson stared at the door for several seconds before turning and walking toward the observation room.

The room she entered was similar to the room where she had interrogated Madam Viper. A table and two chairs were situated in the middle and a two way mirror fitted into the back wall. She walked around the room checking the security, finding two hidden cameras, a hidden microphone and the obvious one of each. She nodded at the two way mirror, conveying that she was ready for the interrogation to begin. She leaned against the wall, facing the door as she waited. Five minutes later her patience was rewarded and the door opened and emitted three people; two agents and a criminal. The criminal was dumped into one of the chairs and chained to it while Natasha watched. A folder was handed to her before the agents left and she was alone with a petty criminal, well compared to her. 

Natasha skimmed though the folder quickly, her enhancements allowing her to read and remember everything. Basic information:  
Name: Harry Nickels   
Age: 38 years old  
Crimes accused of: Fraud, drug trafficking, smuggling ring, murder, kidnapping and arson  
Position: second in command of the Red Raiders Gang, mainly situated in Europe

Natasha’s eyebrow rose a centimeter when reading the crimes, she was not impressed at all.  
“Quite a resume Nickels” she informed the man coldly. The man, Nickels, smirked cockily at her.  
“Why thank you miss, if you want I could show you what else I can do well” raising his eyebrows suggestively as he leered at her. Natasha gave him an uninterested look,  
“Thanks but I can do better.” She paused, “A lot better” he growled angrily,  
“Hey! I’m incredible in bed thank you very much, I have had many complementary feedbacks” he boasted.  
“Right. From who? Your sister or your mother?” He attempted to jump up at that but failed miserably,  
“Take that back Bitch! You have seen what I can do and that it not even any of the details” Mentally Natasha rolled her eyes, seriously he has not even realized he has just confessed.  
“Please tell me… what is it that you think you can do to me seeing as your manhood does not seem like much considering you never denied my comment about your mum or your sister leaving it clear to me that it is true” she told him, unimpressed. His face was turning from red to purple. And he did, he told her in gruesome detail how he was going to chain her up, rape her from behind before torturing her to death but not giving it until she was begging for it” 

Natasha was bored. He hadn’t stopped talking in fifteen minutes and did not seem to be stopping anytime soon. After her goading in the beginning, it seemed he didn’t need any other prompting to start blabbing all the information they wanted to know.

One hour later…

Silence enveloped the room.   
“You finished?” she asked bored. Nickels stared at her, his face doing an expression of a fish.  
“well?” she repeated, bored out of her mind. Nickels nodded numbly. She straightened up,  
“Good. Thank you. This ‘interrogation’ is finished” the sarcasm was heard clearly. Natasha began to walk towards the door,  
“Hey what?” he shouted from behind her, puzzled.  
“We are done” she repeated slowly before opening up the door.   
“It’s finished” she informed the Agents outside, “Please take him back to wherever you found him” they nodded and entered while she continued until she reached the observation room.  
“Amused?” she asked as soon as she entered.  
“Entertained would be a better word” Coulson responded.  
“Please tell me the next one, I am allowed to hurt”   
“You will” he reassured her, “Although it does not look like you need to” she glared at him,  
“He is very lucky he still has his manhood.” Coulson shivered,  
“Indeed” there was a pause.  
“So ready for the next one?” Natasha smirked at him,  
“Please”


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning- swearing present

Natasha was once again waiting in the interrogation room, waiting for the next criminal that she had to interrogate. She sighed mentally as she thought back to the previous month worth of interrogations. Out of two hundred criminals, she only had to resort to using violence in seventy eight of them. The door opened and criminal number two hundred and one entered along with two other agents. She nodded at them and they left. Natasha spent the next ten minutes staring at criminal in silence, her face showing nothing.  
“Who are you?” she raised an eyebrow but didn’t answer. Silence reigned for an entire two minutes,  
“I said. Who. Are. You?” he grounded out, obviously expecting an answer. Once again she remained silent.   
“God dammit! ANSWER ME!” he spat at her, lurching to his feet and pounding a chained fist on the table, expecting her to jump. All she did was lean back and fold her arms, looking thoroughly bored. Seeing that he was not getting anywhere; the criminal slumped back in to his chair.  
“Samuel Paterson” she drawled out, “Wanted in connection for eighteen murders in the first degree as well as being the owner of a slave ring in Asia and Europe” the criminal sat up with a smirk.  
“Do yourself a favour and tell me what I want to know or the next twelve hours will be extremely painful for you” she stated coldly.  
“Yeah?” he leaned forward, “And what exactly do you think you’re gonna do?” fast as lightning, Natasha grabbed one of his hands and broke three of his fingers in quick succession. Paterson screamed in pain whilst looking at her in shock.  
“WHAT THE FUCK!?” he screamed at her whilst cradling his broken hand. “You nutter, do you think you’re gonna get away with this?”  
“Yes” came the bored reply.  
“What you did is against the fucking law! I’m gonna have your ass for this bitch”  
“Really?” she drawled.  
“You’re damn right I will.” She smirked at him,  
“Too bad my superiors gave me leave to do so don’t you think?”  
“What?” he spluttered.  
“My orders are to get the information by whatever means necessary”  
“You cannot be serious.”  
“Deadly”  
“This cannot be real.”  
“Oh believe me Mr. Paterson it is real, and believe me that if you don’t give me exactly what I want, it will get a lot worse than it already is. Do you know why?”  
“Why?” he asked cautiously,  
“Because I am the one they call in to do the shit that others won’t. I’m the Black Widow Paterson, perhaps you have heard of me?” Paterson face lost all color,  
“You… you can’t be” he stammered.  
“Oh believe me Paterson, I am. And I will do whatever is necessary. Understood?” he nodded numbly,  
“Now then, tell me everything you know about your slave rings and others” and he did just that.

 

“Impressive Romanoff.” Coulson told her as soon as exited the room. “Not even an hour was needed to break him”  
“He was a wimp” came the reply. Coulson snorted,  
“No my dear Agent, it is because you scare them shitless regardless of their previous bravado” Natasha shrugged as if to say ‘not my fault’  
“How many left sir?” she asked  
“That was your last one Agent, congratulations” she stopped walking,  
“Really?” he nodded.  
“Is there anything else the Council requires of me or am I being sent back to Director Fury?”  
“The Council wants a final debrief and then it’s back to the Helicarrier.” She nodded,   
“I presume, they want to see me now?”  
“No time like the present”

 

“Agent Romanoff, please take a seat” Katrina spoke.  
“Council members” Natasha greeted, giving them a short bow before complying and sitting in the chair provided for her.  
“Congratulations on a successful run Agent. Two hundred and one out of two hundred and one. Very good.”   
“My thanks Ma’am”   
“I’m glad to see you kept in line with your orders” Malik informed her with a smile, she dipped her head in acknowledgement.   
“Following orders is nothing new to me sir”  
“That is obvious” commented Simon, the last Council member, amused.   
“Was there anything else the Council would have me do?” Natasha asked. They shook their heads,  
“No tha-“ an agent burst through the door in a panic,  
“Sorry to disrupt you sirs, ma’am but there’s been a death!” he told them. The council members stood up at once,  
“Who!?” Katrina demanded  
“Prisoner Samuel Paterson Ma’am” the agent answered. All the council members turned to Natasha,  
“How did he die agent?”  
“Blood vessel burst in the brain”  
“Agent Romanoff, remind me who was your last assignment?” Samuel asked snidely  
“Samuel Paterson Sir” she answered quietly  
“And what was our orders regarding the prisoners?”  
“They could not be permanently harmed or killed Sir”  
“Then perhaps you can explain this?”   
“I didn’t kill him sir”  
“Oh really?” his disbelief clear to all  
“Yes sir, the only damage I did was break three fingers sir”  
“We will see. Agent, take the Widow to a holding cell” the agent stepped forward and took Natasha’s arm,  
“Yes sir” he led her out of the room.

“I don’t believe Agent Romanoff had anything to do with his death” Katrina commented  
“I agree” Malik spoke  
“You cannot be serious? He dies soon after his interrogation with her. I told you she could not be trusted!” burst Samuel  
“And her motive Samuel?” asked Simon, “she is not stupid, she would not risk her life by disobeying our orders in the same building we are in” Samuel faltered at that.  
“Let us review the recording of the interrogation, which will shed some light on whether or not she could have possibly caused this” Katrina finally demanded, frustrated with the situation. The other members agreed.

One hour later…   
“Well it looks like she was telling the truth after all” Simon commented after the interrogation playing on the screen finished.  
“Indeed. Shall we go and release her from the holding cell gentlemen, perhaps we can set her onto the real murder, if foul play did indeed happen?” asked Katrina.  
“I guess so” Samuel agreed grudgingly. The others rolled their eyes at his continued distrust of the Widow,  
“She could save your life personally Samuel and you would still distrust her” Malik commented with exasperation.  
“Just because she was not the cause of the death this time, does not mean she will not be in the future” he replied stubbornly. Katrina sighed in annoyance,  
“Shall we Gentlemen?”

Natasha sat calmly in the middle of the cot in her cell, knowing that someone would come and release her shortly after reviewing the tape. ‘And my trip was going so well’ she thought to herself, vaguely amused at the situation despite the seriousness of the event.  
‘It was not like his death was a loss to humanity’ she looked up when she heard footsteps from down the hall, nothing beat having super senses. Her door opened and she saw to her surprise every council member standing in the door way,  
“Apologies Agent Romanoff, we had to make sure” Katrina spoke instantly. Natasha got gracefully to her feet,  
“Not a problem ma’am, I would have done the same thing” Katrina nodded and gestured for Natasha to follow them.  
“We would like you to get to the bottom of this Agent Romanoff, before you are sent back to Director Fury.” Malik commented, his tone showing it was an order. Natasha nodded sharply,  
“Yes Sir”  
“Good. You have full clearance, report everything you find personally to us.”  
“Yes Sir”  
“Dismissed Agent Romanoff”  
“Council” she replied curtly before splitting off from their group and heading towards the crime scene.  
“How long till she figures it out?” Simon asked  
“$50 on one day” Malik spoke  
“I’ll take that bet, but fifteen hours” replied Katrina with a smirk  
“Are you really betting on her?” Samuel asked in disbelief. The others stared at him, waiting.  
“Two days max” he sighed. The rest of them chuckled,  
“I place my bet on eight hours or less” Simon finished the pool. “May the best council member win.”

Natasha was currently standing in the cell where Paterson was being held. Slowly turning round in a circle, she filed away every detail of the room in her mind, trying to work out if someone had managed to enter the cell or not.   
“How’s it going?” Coulson’s voice spoke from behind her. She spun round to face him,  
“Nothing obvious yet Sir. I cannot find any evidence suggesting that someone other than Paterson was in this cell. The recordings have already been looked at and analyzed and nothing has come up”  
“Do you think foul play has been committed?” Asked Coulson. Natasha considered the information before her.  
“In all honesty sir, the evidence suggests that the burst vessel was caused by a previous injury, perhaps even before SHIELD picked him up”  
“I Concur Romanoff” she sighed,  
“And it was going so well” Coulson chuckled,  
“Death seems to follow you everywhere Romanoff” he commented. Natasha shrugged, not offended,  
“That’s not my fault”  
“Quite” there was a pause; “Life is not boring when you’re around Agent Romanoff” she shrugged again,  
“If you say so Sir. Shall we report back to the Council?” Coulson nodded,  
“Indeed”

“That is your final report Agent Romanoff? Samuel Paterson died from unsuspecting consequence from a previous injury?” Malik asked  
“Yes Sir, I cannot find any evidence to suggest otherwise. An autopsy may or may not give a different cause of death however it does look unlikely”   
The Council glanced once more at the report in front of them before sharing a silent conversation between them all.   
“Very well, it seems you are done here Agent Romanoff. You and Agent Coulson will be taking a Quinjet back to Director Fury.”  
“Yes sir” Natasha answered curtly  
“Congratulations on a job well done Agent Romanoff, we will be keeping track of your time with SHIELD. Do not disappoint us” Katrina told her.  
“Yes Ma’am. Thank you” she gave them a small bow before spinning round on her heels and walking out the door.

“Ready to leave?” Coulson asked her as she met him by the Quinjet  
“Yes sir”  
“Good. Let’s go home” the doors closing behind them.


	29. Chapter Twenty nine

Chapter Twenty-Nine

“Welcome back agent Coulson, agent Romanoff” Agent Hill greeted them as they exited the Quinjet.  
“Thank you Hill, how’s the fort?” Coulson answered as they all began to walk inside, Natasha walking behind them silently.  
“Still standing” Hill replied.  
“How did the visit go?”  
“Well, for the most part, Romanoff completed all interrogations they set for her and managed to get three out of four council members on her side” Hill raised an eyebrow at that,  
“Congratulations agent Romanoff” she said, turning her head around to see her new agent,  
“Thank you Ma’am” Natasha responded quietly,  
“Does Fury want a debriefing?” Hill smirked,  
“You know the man Coulson, of course he does” 

“Agent Coulson, Agent Romanoff, have a seat” Fury spoke the instant they stepped through the door. Handler and agent alike obeyed and sat in the offered seats.  
“You did well according to my sources Agent Romanoff. Well done”  
“Thank you sir”  
“Any trouble?” Natasha shifted subtly,  
“Romanoff was accused of murder” Coulson answered. An eyebrow raised was Fury’s response,  
“Oh? And how did that come about?”  
“Suspect died after his interrogation sir” Natasha informed him,  
“As you are here and not dead, I can come to the conclusion that you were not involved?”  
“Yes sir”  
“Good. Anything else I need to be informed about?”  
“No Director” “No sir” came the responses, almost simultaneously.   
“I want to see you both back here in three days. Romanoff, you will be sent on your first covert mission as a full Agent. Agent Barton will be your partner. Any questions?”   
“No sir”   
“Good. Dismissed.” Coulson and Romanoff stood up, Romanoff offering a small bow before heading toward the door.  
“Oh Romanoff?” Fury called, she turned to face him,  
“There is no need to bow to every superior you see now; you are at SHIELD NOT the Red Room. Understood?”  
Natasha gave him a small smile and nodded,   
“Understood Sir”

Natasha wandered into the gym, wanting to blow off some steam. Every agent in the room stopped what they were doing and stared at her. She raised an eyebrow and glared at them, they all suddenly looked away. Natasha smirked as she went over to one of the punching bags in the corner and proceeded to punch the shit out of it.  
“You’re back” she turned round and came face to face with Barton  
“Yes” she answered curtly  
“How was it?”  
“I survived.” He grinned,  
“Listen, I’m sorry about before. I was just following orders, didn’t actually want to be horrible to you. I was wondering if we could give this friendship thing another go?” he rambled on. Once more she raised an eyebrow at him,  
“I don’t have friends, agent Barton.” He opened his mouth, trying to come up with a response,  
“Civility then? We do have to work together” she studied him,  
“Very well.” She smirked at him, “Want to spar?” Barton gulped, knowing exactly what she was capable of.  
“Sure. Why not?” trying to sound happy about it but failing.  
“Excellent, I promise to not go too hard on you” she informed him before turning round and walking to the mats. Barton trailed after her.  
“Rules?” she asked as she got into position,  
“Um no killing, maiming or paralyzing. Winner is the last one conscious or if the other surrenders.” She nodded her agreement before attacking. She was blur as she slammed into his side with a kick, sending him flying across the room into the wall. Barton crumbled to ground, unconscious.   
She straightened up and smirked at the watching agents,  
“I win”

The agents took a step back, afraid.   
“ROMANOFF!” she stiffened before slowing turning to face the voice. A large agent was standing there with an angry scowl on his face,  
“You coward!” he screamed before charging at her, “You have no honor do you bitch?” throwing the first punch,  
Natasha caught it before using his own momentum to throw him over her shoulder, hard onto the floor. Three other agents, friends of the attacker attacked her. Slamming her foot into one of their stomach’s, she swiped the feet out from under another one before running towards the last one and catching her round the head with her legs as she flung the agent to the ground. The entire fight was over within a minute. She strolled over to the first attacker and pulled him to his feet, his arm twisted painfully behind his back. Natasha bent down so her head was by his ear,  
“No one cares about honor in a fight in the real world” she snarled at him before shoving him away and striding towards where Barton was staggering to his feet, the other agents scrambling out of her way.  
“You good Agent Barton?” he groaned and looked at her,  
“I thought you were going to go easy on me?” he complained. She shrugged as she grabbed one of his arms and put it over her shoulder before leading him out of the gym and to the medical center,  
“I did Agent Barton” he just groaned again,  
“New rule. No more flying kicks” Natasha smirked,   
“Agreed”

“What happened to him?” a doctor asked as soon as they entered  
“He lost a fight with me” Natasha answered. The Doctor studied her before sighing,  
“What did you do to him Agent Romanoff?”  
“Kicked him into a wall” came the nonchalant reply. He rolled his eyes before shooing Natasha out,  
“Try not to damage any more agents, agent Romanoff” she turned round at the door,  
“No promises Doctor. Although you will have several other patients within the next five minutes” she informed him before disappearing from view. He sighed before turning back to his patient,  
“Do you know what she’s talking about?” Barton groaned,  
“Don’t know the cause but I know that several other agents were on the ground as we left the gym”  
“And why did you challenge the Black Widow to a spar?”   
“I didn’t. She asked, I agreed” the doctor rolled his eyes,  
“And that makes the situation any better because…?” Barton grinned at him,  
“Because it is a start to making amends for the way I treated her on Hill’s orders” the doctor just sighed,  
“Well if that’s her way of retribution then I will probably be seeing you a lot here in the future” Barton winced slightly at the thought before the grin was back,  
“Let’s be honest, I’m here frequently regardless”  
“True but try not to make a habit of it” the doctor pleaded, Barton smirked,  
“No promises” the doctor sighed,  
“You two are going to send me to an early grave” Barton let out a laugh before groaning as his concussion once again made itself known,  
“Right lay down please Agent Barton, and don’t even think about trying to leave otherwise I will get Agent Coulson in here to sit you on your ass permanently” the doctor threatened,  
“No need to get Coulson doc, I won’t be going anywhere” Barton reassured him.   
Just then the other injured agents came tumbling in. Several other doctors and nurses from around the room converged onto them,  
“That’s Agent Romanoff’s handy work I assume?” the doctor asked, Barton grinned manically,  
“That it is” the doctor sighed,  
“This is going to be a long day” Barton just cackled.

As soon as she had left the medical wing, Natasha strode back to the gym and proceeded to knock out every single agent that she challenged. She didn’t care how many came at her at once, they were not a match for her. Coulson and Hill stood watching from the other side of the room as their agents were being pummeled into the ground.  
“We’re not going to have any agents left at this rate” Hill commented,  
“She’s just letting out a bit of aggression, nothing to worry about” Coulson responded. Hill raised an eyebrow,  
“You do realize that now that you are her handler, you get to fill in the paperwork needed due to her.” She paused, “That includes every trip an agent has to make to medical because of her” Just as another agent got foot-slammed into the wall, making them both wince.  
“Good point” Coulson said before hurrying forward to stop the ever growing mountain of injuries,  
“Agent Romanoff!” he shouted. Natasha finished taking down the agent in front of her before turning toward her new handler.  
“Yes sir?” she asked, walking towards him.  
“I think the other agents have had enough for the time being, don’t you think?” Privately Natasha did not agree however she kept her opinion to herself and nodded head her,  
“Of course sir” Hill smirked as she walked over, knowing exactly what her agent truly thought.  
“Agent Romanoff” Hill greeted her,  
“Ma’am” Natasha responded with a nod. “May I help you with anything?”  
Hill shook her head,  
“No agent, we just received a notice from medical about a sudden influx of injured agents, we traced the source back to here” Natasha had the decency to look slightly guilty.   
“Be careful Agent Romanoff, otherwise you will have no sparring partners left”  
“Yes Ma’am” she responded. Hill gave her a half smile,  
“If you need a good sparring partner, may I suggest Coulson? He’s very good” the smile turned into a wicked smirk. Hill may be a hardass but she had a sense of humor, a very dark sense of humor but a sense of humor all the same. Coulson gapped at her for a moment before turning to face his agent,  
“Would you like to spar agent Romanoff?” not outwardly showing his distress. Natasha give him a small smile,  
“Yes Sir” she answered, moving back towards the mats before sinking into position. Coulson gave Hill the evil eye before following. Inwardly Hill knew she would may for this, but for now she just enjoyed the moment.  
“Rules?” she asked  
“No killing or permanent injury. Winner is the last one standing or if one yields”  
“Agreed” Natasha said before launching herself at her handler. The room was silent save from the combat taking place as every agent still there watched with wide eyes. Coulson managed to duck and avoid the first three punches but failed to notice the kick aim at his stomach. Natasha moved back as she surveyed him, he had good reflexes, she admitted to herself. Coulson straightened up before attacking back. Deftly, Natasha blocked or avoided them.  
She had to admit that he was an excellent fighter, just sadly not up to her caliber. Natasha quickly moved in to finish, avoiding a powerful punch at her head, she caught him by the throat in one hand and caught the punch in the other before throwing him to the ground, his arm trapped behind him.  
“Yield?” she asked coldly, her Black Widow persona in full swing. Coulson nodded,  
“I yield” at once Natasha released him and helped him up.  
“Good fight Agent Romanoff” he said, shaking her hand.   
“Thank you Sir” Hill joined them,   
“Well done Romanoff. Question: why don’t you fight Barton, he’s the only one close to your skill?” Natasha smirked at her,  
“I already have”   
“Oh, how was it?” she raised an eyebrow surveying the smirking agent,  
“He lasted two seconds” Natasha answered.  
“Really?” Hill asked, looking stunned. Natasha nodded,  
“Romanoff, what did you do?” Coulson asked, looking slightly alarmed. Natasha gave him an innocent look,  
“I only kicked him into a wall” the two high ranking agents looked at her in shock.  
“New rule Agent Romanoff” Hill suddenly spoke, “No kicking agents into wall without a valid reason.”   
“Yes Ma’am” she answered, slightly put out. Hill nodded,  
“Good. I’ll see you both in three days” before walking out.  
“You worry me sometimes Romanoff” Coulson informed her.   
“Then you worry too much Sir” she responded. He chuckled.   
“I think I worry just the right amount Agent” she shrugged.  
“Whatever you say Sir. Am I dismissed?”   
“Yes.”  
“Very well sir. I’ll see you later” Natasha gave him one more nod before walking over to the showers, leaving him staring after her.


	30. Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty  
Three days later…  
Natasha knocked on Fury’s office door and waited to be permitted entry. A sharp ‘enter’ sounded from within and she opened the door before walking in.  
“Director” she greeted with a nod.   
“Agent Romanoff” Fury responded in kind. Before any other conversation could be had, another knock sounded and Agent Hill and Coulson walked in. They greeted their boss much like Natasha did before sitting down in the chairs provided.   
“Coulson, where’s Agent Barton?” Fury asked, five minutes later and they were still waiting for the last member of the group to arrive.  
“Agent Barton is just having a final check-up from medical due to the concussion he suffered several days ago. He should be arriving momentarily”  
“And what exactly happened to cause the concussion, he has not been on any training or authorised missions during this time gap?” Fury wanted to know. Coulson hesitated before answering,  
“He ah lost a fight with another agent Director” he glanced quickly at Romanoff, whose face was blank. Unfortunately Fury caught the look and turned to Natasha,  
“I assume it was you he was fighting agent Romanoff?”  
“Yes sir” she responded  
“And what exactly did you do to cause a concussion this severe?”  
“I kicked him into a wall sir” his eye widened slightly,  
“You kicked him into-” he stopped, shaking his head slightly, “A wall? You kicked him into a wall?” he asked in disbelief,  
“Yes sir” a pause.  
“Right.” He turned back to Coulson, “Any permanent damage?” Coulson grinned slightly,  
“No sir.”

Just then knocking could be heard on the door. Within twenty seconds, Barton was sitting himself down in the last available chair.  
“Sorry sir, had to check in with medical” he apologized to Fury.  
“So I heard” Fury responded dryly. “Are you able to resume field work?” Barton nodded,  
“Yes sir”   
“Good. Now the mission will be a relatively simply one as Agent Romanoff is just getting started. Your main priority is taking out a cell of terrorists known to be part of the Ten Rings. They are currently located here in America, Texas to be exact for some unknown reason. Is this understood?”  
“Yes sir” came from both Barton and Romanoff.  
“Agent Coulson will be your handler and will be going with you while Agent Hill will be your main contact here at SHIELD headquarters in case backup is required.” Fury continued,  
“Agent Romanoff” he waited until he was sure he had her undivided attention, “I want at least two members of the cell alive for interrogation. No civilian casualties. Is that understood?” he pierced her with a hard stare. Natasha nodded curtly,  
“Understood Sir.”  
“Good. Your Quinjet leaves at 0600 tomorrow morning. Dismissed.” Each agent nodded and filed out the room. 

The next morning Natasha was already in one of the pilot’s chairs waiting for the rest of the ‘team’ to arrive. Coulson was first,  
“Morning Agent Romanoff”  
“Good morning Sir” she greeted him politely back.  
“Ready to leave?”  
“Yes sir” Coulson nodded,  
“Good. How do you feel working with Agent Barton?”  
“My feelings are irrelevant Sir, I have been given orders and will obey them” automatically falling back on the Red Room standard reply. Coulson gave her a concerned look,  
“That’s not what I asked Romanoff. Here at SHIELD your thoughts are taken into account therefore I ask again, how do you feel working with Agent Barton?” Natasha looked at him,  
“I have no problems working with him sir” Coulson inwardly sighed ‘Trying to get her to give a personal response is like pulling teeth’  
“Very well Romanoff. If you have a problem or question, don’t hesitate to come to me”  
“Yes sir” came the expected reply, both knowing that that would be unlikely.  
“Hey, ready to go?” came a new voice. They both turned to see Barton walking up the ramp, putting his quiver across his back.  
“Yes Barton, we were just waiting on you” Coulson replied.  
“You know how to pilot one of these things?” Barton asked as he took the other pilot chair. Natasha spared a glance before turning her attention back to the controls,  
“Yes Agent Barton. I can pilot all types of flying machines” she flicked a switch and the ramp doors shut.  
“That’s cool” was Barton’s only reply. Coulson rolled his eyes and too took a seat. Natasha placed the headset on,  
“Control, this is Black Widow requesting permission for take-off. Over.”  
“Widow, this is control, state your flight ID and passcode. Over.  
“Flight ID, delta seven. Passcode, Alpha Bravo nine seven five three. Over.  
“Permission granted Delta seven. Proceed. Over.”   
“Understood Control. Over and out.” Natasha finished the standard response before moving forward in preparation of take-off. Once in flight she became aware of Coulson and Barton’s staring,  
“Agent Romanoff how do you know the passcodes for this Quinjet, as far as I was aware only Barton and I knew” Coulson half demanded. Natasha looked at him calmly,  
“Director Fury informed me late last night Sir” Coulson nodded, looking slightly relieved. She wondered if he thought she had hacked into the SHIELD database. Not that she couldn’t, indeed she had done it in the past for the KGB.  
“ETA eighty six minutes” she informed them both before going back to staring out the widow silently.

The Quinjet touched down in an abandoned airstrip in the outskirts of Texas.   
“Excellent piloting Agent Romanoff” Complimented Coulson.  
“Thank you Sir” she responded as she exited down the ramp, Barton following quickly behind her.  
“Our safe house is currently six miles south of us” Barton informed them.   
“Then let’s get walking Agent Barton” Coulson told him before setting off, Natasha following close behind. Barton grumbled about having to walk before reluctantly beginning walking after them. They walked in silence for twenty minutes before Barton got bored,  
“Are we there yet?” Coulson rolled his eyes,  
“Barton I swear to God, if you start that up again you will be on desk duty for two months after we have come back” he threatened. Natasha just ignored them. Barton gasped in horror,  
“You wouldn’t do that to me boss would you?”  
“Oh I would, perhaps it will give you incentive do actually complete your paperwork for once.”  
“You wouldn’t really do that to me” Barton muttered. Coulson raised an eyebrow,  
“And why wouldn’t I?” he asked. Barton grinned,  
“Because you love me” he replied happily. Natasha rolled her eyes at his childish display.  
“Barton” Coulson started conversationally,  
“Hm?”   
“It’s called tough love” Barton stopped and stared at him,  
“But but but” he tried to form a protest,  
“Just shut up Barton” he told him,  
“Shutting up boss”. They continued to walk in silence until they reached the safe house which they would be staying in.  
“Romanoff, do a perimeter sweep. Barton. Back exit” Natasha nodded before heading off while the other two approached the house.   
“All clear” Natasha informed them as she walked inside. The other two agents were already checking the rooms out.  
“Good. There are two cots in the back room. A bathroom down the hall and a kitchen with a table opposite this room.” She nodded.  
“Right now we’re here we are going terrorist hunting” Natasha smirked evilly. Coulson shot her a worried look,  
“Alive Agent Romanoff. They need to be kept alive” Natasha wiped her face clean of any emotions before nodding,  
“Yes sir”  
“Good. Let’s go”

“What are they doing?” Barton asked from where he was crouched on the roof of a neighbouring building.   
“Negotiating, Agent Barton” Romanoff replied from where she was hidden in the shadows of the building where their terrorists were.  
“Negotiating what?” Natasha was silent for a few moments,  
“Weapons. Starks.”  
“Shit” Barton exclaimed.  
“Language” Coulson warned him.  
“Sorry Sir” Barton replied sheepishly. “What are we going to do?”  
“Take them out” Natasha replied  
“Natasha...” Coulson warned,  
“Yes sir?”She replied, honestly confused.  
“Down. We take them down, not out” he replied dryly,  
“Yes sir” came the quiet reply, “Now?”  
“No. Tonight. Pull back to base”  
“Yes sir” came simultaneous replies.

“Everyone in position?” Coulson’s voice came over the radio link.  
“Widow in position”  
“Hawkeye in position”  
“Good. We go in, in three... two...one! go go go!”  
Coulson slammed open the warehouse doors, Hawkeye rained arrows down from above while the Widow came flying in through the window, landing right in the middle of the group of terrorists. Being careful not to kill any of them, Natasha made her way around the room, taking down as many terrorists as she could. Coulson was doing the same, while Barton was picking of the leftovers and those who tried to flee.  
“Coulson, one just left through the back exit” Barton informed him. Coulson cursed silently,  
“Widow, after him!” he ordered. Natasha didn’t bother to confirm she had heard, instead she spun on her heel and ran after the fleeing terrorist. 

She gained quickly as she flew across the ground. It was days like this that thanked the Red Room for the serum.   
“Stop!” she shouted. The terrorists glanced behind him at the shout and let out a little eep when he saw how close she was. He ran faster. Natasha cursed him under her breath before speeding up as well. She caught up with him and tripped him over,  
“I said stop!” she growled at him as she dragged him to his feet. He allowed her to, whimpering all the while.  
“Try escaping one more time, and I promise you, you will not be taken back alive” she warned him, coldly. He frantically nodded his head in agreement.

“You caught him I see” Coulson commented as she walked back inside the warehouse.  
“Yes sir” she replied before dumping her quarry down with the rest of the captured terrorists.  
“Deaths?” she asked,  
“Three. Two by arrows. One broken neck” he replied. She nodded. Three out of a possible sixteen.  
“Good job Widow” Barton complemented her as she walked towards them.   
“Thank you agent Barton. Not bad yourself” she replied.   
“When’s cleanup here?” Coulson asked.  
“Three hours”  
“Good. Excellent work, the both of you” twin thanks you’s was the reply. “Let’s go home”

“Any problems?” Fury asked Coulson later that night.  
“No sir. Everything went according to plan”  
“Romanoff alright?”  
“Yes sir. She has no problems obeying orders” Fury smirked,  
“that is becoming more than obvious. Any problems between her and Barton?” Coulson sighed,  
“Define problems sir?” Fury frowned,  
“let me put it this way, can they work together without screwing up the mission?” Coulson nodded,  
“yes sir. Barton is juvenile sometimes and is attempting to get Romanoff to ‘open up’ a little, while Romanoff is a hardcore professional.” Fury considered the information for a while,  
“Very well. I believe Strike Team Delta has just been formed. Inform agents Barton and Romanoff of their new status won’t you?”  
“Of course Director” Coulson replied, standing up. “They’re going to become a handful in the years to come, you know that right?”  
“Indeed. But something tells me they are also going to be the most successful” Fury responded. Coulson smiled,  
“That they are”


	31. Chapter Thirty One

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Set in 2006- almost fifteen years later. Natasha looks twenty three-twenty four. Barton is married and has one kid. (THIS IS NOT A NATASHA/CLINT FIC)

“Barton!” Clint spun round from where he was currently shooting targets in the shooting area.  
“Yeah?” he answered when he saw Coulson standing there.  
“Have you seen agent Romanoff?”  
“Yep!” he purposefully popped the ‘p’. There was a pause.  
“When?”  
“Five hours ago”  
“Where?”   
“Here” Coulson growled in frustration  
“Barton, I want to know where she is… Right. Now. This very minute”  
“Then why didn’t you just say so?” Barton mock pouted.  
“Barton…” Coulson warned.  
“Okay, okay. Nat’s in the training room. New recruits.” Coulson sighed,  
“Right. Thank you.” He walked out of the room, leaving a grinning Clint behind him.

“Sequence five, everyone. Ready. Left punch. Right punch. Left punch. Duck. Flying kick.” The newbie’s were doing great until the flying kick. Half of them landing on their butt, three sprained their ankle, five managed to keep their balance. Natasha stood in front of them, an eyebrow raised and unimpressed. For the one hundredth time in the last hour she wondered what she had done to deserve this.  
“Let’s try this again shall we?” she asked rhetorically.  
“No” said one of them.   
“No?” she repeated softly.  
“You heard me. We have been working for nearly three hours non-stop. We deserve a rest”  
“Listen to me trainee. This is a simple work out session. If you can’t cut it then there’s the door.”  
“Are you kicking me out!?” he asked half in disbelief and half in anger.  
“Yes” she responded calmly.  
“Do you know who I am!? Who my father is?” he demanded. Natasha stalked over to him, eyes cold as ice.  
“I know who you are Chambers. As for your father, I. Don’t. Care.”  
“I’m gonna have your badge for this” he tried to threaten, still naively thinking that his father had any control over SHIELD”   
Natasha rolled her eyes before quick as lightening grabbing his arm and flipping him over, her foot on his neck.  
“Was that a threat Chambers?” she asked, her voice cold, “Because if it was” she put more pressure down “I don’t deal well with threats, especially from jumped up little bastards like you who have delusions of grandeur”  
“Romanoff!” a shout echoed around the room. She looked up and saw Coulson standing in the doorway looking rather frazzled.  
“Release him. Please.” Natasha sighed before obeying and reluctantly removing her foot.  
“Can I help you Agent Coulson?” before Coulson could answer, Chambers butted in,  
“I demand that you arrest her Agent, she attacked me!” a hint of hysteria entering his voice at the end.  
“Then I will arrest you as well Mr. Chambers for threatening an agent of the law.” Chambers paled dramatically,  
“No, no. I’m good.” Coulson smiled coldly at him,  
“Very well. Agent Lewis, escort Mr. Chambers from the premises please” he spoke to one of the senior agents also in the room.  
“Yes sir” the agent responded. When they had left, Coulson turned back to Natasha,  
“Fury wants to see you in his office” Natasha nodded,  
“Yes sir” turning back to the trainees, “session’s ended. Dismissed”   
“Yes Ma’am!” came the relieved reply. She gave a final nod before following Coulson out of the room.  
“Do you know why Director Fury wants to see me?”  
“Undercover mission. Level ten.” Natasha nodded,  
“Yes sir” she responded before picking up her pace, almost jogging towards her boss’s office. 

She knocked on her boss’s door before waiting for permission to enter. Once given, Natasha made her way across the room before standing in front of Fury’s desk.  
“Good afternoon Agent Romanoff, have a seat” Fury greeted his top assassin.  
“Good afternoon Sir” she replied as she sat down in the offered chair.  
“This mission, agent Romanoff is two parts. Your cover” he handed her a folder, “is to pose as Anthony Starks assistant. We have had reports that he may be dying, you need to confirm this as well as see if there is anything that we could do about it. Your second mission” he paused again to hand her a second folder, “is to covertly assess him for the Avengers Initiative. Is this understood?”   
Natasha had been reading the folders given to at record speed whilst he was briefing her. She looked up sharply and nodded,  
“Understood sir. 

“The woman from legal is here, can you please come over and sign this thing. I promise this will be the last time I ask you to sign over you company” Pepper Potts voice rang out throughout the room.  
“But I’m boxing” Tony protested from where he was bouncing on the tip of his toes in the boxing ring. At that precise moment Natasha entered the room and walked over to Potts.  
“I need you to sign here and here please” she instructed Pepper. Pepper gratefully signed.  
“Tony! Over here, now!” Pepper snapped at him. Tony spun round to face her; Happy took that opportunity to lecture him.  
“Rule number one: never take your eye of your opponent” Tony kicked him in the chest in retaliation before turning back round to face the women in the room.  
“Your name lady?” he asked, pointing at Natasha. (A.N Natasha will be known as Natalie for the moment)  
“Rushman, Natalie Rushman” Natalie answered promptly. He opened his mouth to respond before closing it and turning to Happy,  
“You mind giving her a lesson?”  
“Sure no problem” Happy answered.   
“Front and centre lady”   
“No, tony” Pepper started however was cut off by Natalie,  
“No its okay” she spoke as she walked over to the ring and entered. Tony exited and walked over to the seat where Pepper had settled.   
“Who is she?” he asked,  
“She is from legal and potentially a very expensive sexual harassment case if you keep ogling her like that” Pepper replied snippily.

 

“Have you ever boxed before?” Happy asked her,  
“I have, yes” she answered with a small smile.  
“What? Tao Bo? Booty boot camp? Crunch? Something like that?” he smirked at her. Natalie lost her smile and inwardly wanted nothing more than to maim the man for his sexist comments.  
“How do you spell your name Natalie?” Stark asked as he began typing on his IPad.  
“R-U-S-H-M-A-N”  
“What, are you gonna Google her now?  
“I thought I was ogling her? wow. Very, very impressive individual.  
“You are so predictable, you know that?  
“She’s fluent in French, Italian, Russian, German, Arabic and Latin.” Stark looked at Pepper confused,  
“Who speaks Latin?  
“No one speaks latin, it’s a dead language. You can read Latin and you can write Latin but you can’t speak it” Pepper answered.  
“I need her”  
“No you don’t”  
“I need an assistant and I feel that it is her”  
“No its not” Pepper retorted

Natalie attempted to keep track of what they were saying, all the while pretending to listen to Happy talk about rules.   
“Rule number one: never take your eye off your opponent” happy said as he attempted to punch her whilst her back was turned. True to her training, Natalie quickly grabbed his wrist, swung her legs around his neck and threw him onto the ground.  
“OH MY GOD! Happy!” Pepper shrieked. That brought her out of her killing mode and she quickly released him before stepping out of the ring.  
“That’s what I’m talking about!” Stark exclaimed happily, “Looks like a TKO to me”  
“I slipped” Happy told everyone in an effort to get back his manly pride. Natalie covertly rolled her eyes. She grabbed the legal book and spoke to Stark,  
“I need your impression” Stark stared at her for a few seconds,  
“You have a quiet reserve” he started before she stepped in,  
“I meant your finger print” she corrected, as she pointed to where he should ink his finger and press down. He did as he was instructed and turned to Pepper,  
“You’re the boss” Pepper smiled happily. Natalie cleared her throat,  
“Will that be all Mr. Stark?” she asked  
“No” spoke stark  
“Yes, that will be all thank you Ms Rushman” Pepper spoke over him. Natalie smiled at them both before walking out. Stark turned to Pepper,  
“I want one”  
“No”

“Ms Rushman, I would like to offer you the one in a million job offer of being my personal assistant” Stark told her arrogantly a few days later. Natalie plastered a happy smile on to her face and replied professionally,  
“I accept, thank you Mr. Stark. I assure you, you won’t be disappointed.”   
“Please, call me Tony. After all we will be spending a lot of time together” he flirted. She cleared her throat,  
“I am you personal assistant Mr. Stark. Calling you ‘Tony’ would be unprofessional. Now,” she smoothly changed topic, “When would you like me to start?”  
“Immediately” Stark responded with a smirk. “Pepper currently has the paperwork that needs to be filled in” he informed her.   
“Then I will get started on that” She told him before exiting the room.

 

“Cover established Sir” she spoke into her phone as she looked round her new apartment.  
“Any difficulty Romanoff?” Fury asked gruffly,  
“No sir. He wanted me as soon as he saw me” she replied with a hint of distain. Fury smirked, oh Stark would pay for his sexism when the op was over. Natasha would make damn sure of that. He thought in dark amusement.  
“Anything to report so far?” he asked, knowing that his best agent would have something already, despite it only being two days.  
“Stark is definitely dying Sir. He’s made his girlfriend the CEO of his company. He’s giving away his entire art collection- something that Ms. Potts is pissed off about to no end considering she was the one who had acquired many of the pieces. His mood is all over the place and he’s acting more like a reckless idiot than before” she reported succinctly. Fury nodded his head in approval of what he had just heard.  
“Excellent work already Agent Romanoff. Continue your mission and keep me posted.” He ordered.  
“Yes sir” she responded before hanging up.

“Whatever happens in the next twenty minutes just go with it” Pepper told him  
“Go with what?” he asked confused  
“Mr Stark” Natalie appeared out of no where  
“Hey” he replied  
“Hello, How was your flight?” she asked politely.  
“it was excellent. Boy its mice to see you” he responded. She just smiled before going back to professional outlook,  
“We have one photographer from the ACM, if you don’t mind?” she asked calmly, taking his and Peppers drinks which they had just acquired and placed them on a passing waiter’s tray.  
The Photographer came up then and began taking pictures, forcing Stark and Pepper to smile.   
“Right this way” Natalie appeared as soon as the photos were done. She gestured forwards and began walking,  
“You look fantastic” he complemented her  
“Why, thank you very much” she responded  
“But that unprofessional. Whats on the docket?” he asked,  
“You have an 8.30 dinner.” She lied smoothly  
“Perfect, I’ll be there at 10.00”  
“Absolutely” she smirked a little.  
“Is this us?” he asked looking at a reserved table  
“It can be” she informed him, not missing a beat.”  
“Great. Make it us”  
“Okay” and she walked away to speak to the head waiter.

Stark wandered off until he reached his racing car and driver. Deciding he wanted to race himself, he told the driver which made him storm off. The whole thing being captured on live TV. Pepper stared at the TV for a moment before calling out,  
“Natalie! Natalie!”   
“Yes Ms. Potts” she answered as she hurried over  
“Did you know about this?” Pepper demanded  
“This is the first I’ve heard of it” She answered calmly.  
“This cannot be allowed to happen” Pepper stated,  
“I agree absolutely. What would you like me to do?” she asked.  
“Get me Happy” Pepper ordered  
“Right away” Natalie answered before sweeping away to find the sexist driver.

“Happy! Ms Potts wants you immediately. Better bring the car as well” she informed the startled man before hurrying off to watch what was happening. 

She got just as Vanko attacked Stark’s racing car. She pressed one on speed dial and made sure she was out of the way so no one would notice her.  
“Director Fury” greeted her.  
“Sir. We have a situation” spoke quickly, informing her superior what exactly was happening on the track.  
“Romanoff, keep a closer eye on both Stark and Pepper after this. Stay away from this attack. Do not blow your cover. Is that understood?” he demanded after she had finished briefing him. Natasha’s jaw clenched for a moment before she responded.  
“Understood Director.” Fury hung up on her. She took a deep breath, calming herself before hurrying off to find Pepper. She would obey Fury, just like she always did.

“Ms Potts, are you alright?” she asked in a worried tone as she reached the woman’s side. Pepper was on the verge of hyperventilating”  
“Just get me out of her please Natalie” she said. Natalie needed no further prompting that that, she tooks Pepper’s arm and led her out of the building and called another member of Stark’s staff to pick them up.  
“Mr. Stark will meet us at the house” She informed Pepper as she got off the phone after her second call. Pepper just nodded. She couldn’t wait until this day was over. 

FLASHFORWARD UNTIL AFTER STARK’S BIRTHDAY PARTY

He knew he was hung-over. It didn’t take a genius to work that out after seeing him lying in a giant doughnut on top of a café.  
“Sir, would you please exit the doughnut” Fury called up from where he was standing. Stark rolled his eyes but did so. He found himself sitting in a booth inside the café, opposite Director Fury.  
“I told you I don’t want to join your super secret boy band” he told him. Fury laughed,  
“I remember you were a ‘do it all alone’ type. How’s that working out for you?” he asked. Stark struggled to look at him,  
“I’m sorry I don’t want to get off on the wrong foot, do I look at the patch or the eye? Honestly I don’t even think you are real”  
“I am very real” stated Fury, “I’m the realest person you’ll ever meet.”  
“Where’s the staff here?” Stark asked, looking round. Fury peered at Starks neck, looking at the poison that was slowly spreading,  
“That’s not looking so good”  
“I’ve been worse” 

Natasha Romanoff walked up to the booth silently, dressed in her standard SHIELD uniform. She spoke to Fury,  
“We’ve secured the perimeter but I don’t think we should hold it for too much longer” she informed him respectfully. Stark looked at her in shock. Fury looked at his face and laughed.  
“Your fired” Stark muttered.  
“That’s not up to you” Natasha retorted calmly before moving to sit down next to her boss.  
“Tony, I would like you to meet Agent Romanoff” Fury gave the introductions as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.  
“I’m a SHIELD shadow. Once we knew you were ill, I was tasked to you by Director Fury” Natasha continued, glancing at Fury at the end. Fury squeezed her shoulder slightly before letting go. He was proud of her work, and damn he was going to let her know that.  
“”You’ve been very busy.” Fury stated. “You’ve been giving away all your stuff; made your girl the CEO and you let your friend fly away with your suit. Now if I didn’t know better…”  
“You don’t know better. I didn’t give it to him, he took it” Stark butted in.  
“Whoa, whoa. You’re ironman and he just took it? The little brother walked in there, kicked your ass and flew away with the suit?” he turned to look at Natasha,  
“Is that even possible?” he asked curiously.  
“According to Mr. Starks Database security guidelines, there are redundancies to prevent unauthorized usage” she answered smoothly. Fury waved his hands to prove his point. Stark looked at them both,  
“What do you want from me?” Natasha got up and walked away to retrieve the lithium dioxide.  
“Nu huh. It’s what you want from me. You have become a problem, a problem I have to deal with. Contrary to your belief you are not the center of my universe. I have bigger problems than you in the southwest region to deal with” seeing that Stark was rabidly losing focus, snapped his fingers and ordered,  
“Hit him” Natasha pressed a syringe into his neck before checking the symptoms and his eyes.   
“Ouch! What are you going to do next? Steal my kidney and sell it? Can’t you promise not to do anything awful in the next five seconds?” he asked of her before turning back to Fury,  
“What did she just do?  
“What we just did FOR you? That’s lithium dioxide, it’ll take the edge off. We’re trying to get you back to work.”   
“Right just give me a couple of boxes of that and I’ll be right as rain” he answered  
“It’s not a cure, just abates the symptoms.” Natasha informed him.  
“It doesn’t look like its gonna be an easy fix” Fury told him. Stark glared at him,  
“Trust me, I’m good at this stuff. I’ve tried every combination, every permutation of every known element.”  
“Well I’m here to tell you, you haven’t tried them all” Fury told him slightly smugly.  
“Agent Romanoff, bring the car around.” Natasha nodded and left.  
“Where’re we going?” Stark asked. Fury looked at him,  
“Home” he replied simply before getting into the side passenger seat whilst Stark got into the back.

Stark was looking at a large case filled with his dad’s old notes when Fury got up.   
“Your under house arrest until you can figure this out” he told him. Natasha walked up,   
“Your car’s ready Sir” she told him.   
“Good. Natasha will remain a floater at Stark Industries with her cover intact.” He glanced at a bewildered Stark, “you remember Agent Coulson don’t you?” as the very agent walked into the room.  
“Yeah”  
“And Tony? Remember, I have my eye on you” with that last word, Fury walked out of the room with a nod to Natasha.  
“We’ve disabled all communications, no contact with the outside world. Good luck” she told him coldly before she too walked out. Leaving him alone with a lot of work and a straight faced agent.


	32. Chapter Thirty Two

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Stark was currently having an argument with Pepper in her office after he had been released from house arrest. He had originally come to apologize for his behavior however; he had unfortunately forgotten that the only thing she was allergic to was strawberries.  
“Ms Potts?” Natalie poked her head round the door. Personal assistant once more.  
“Yes? Come in Natalie” Pepper answered with a smile.  
“Wheels up in 25 minutes ma’am” she informed her.  
“Thank you”  
“Are you blending in well here Natalie? Here at Stark enterprises?” Stark started questioning her. Natalie glared harshly but ignored him. “Natalie, that is your name isn’t it?” he pressed her. Still getting no response, he turned to Pepper,  
“I thought the two of you didn’t get along?” he asked.  
“No, that’s not so” Pepper answered  
“So it’s just me you don’t care for?” he asked, self-pitying.   
“Whilst you’re here Tony, perhaps you and Natalie could discuss the matter of your personal belongings?” gesturing to the side when a large project appeared to be covered under a cloth as she began to walk out of the room  
“Absolutely.” Natalie agreed whist she began to pick up the folders left on the desk. As soon as the door shut Natalie spoke,   
“You just can’t keep your mouth shut can you?”  
“Boy you’re good. You are mind-blowingly duplicitous.” Stark complemented her. Impressed despite himself. “How’d you do it?” Natalie just glared at him,  
“You’re a triple imposter- I’ve never seen anything like you. Is anything about you real? Do you even speak Latin?” he kept pressing her.  
Natalie speaks Latin to him.  
“Wait what? What did you say?” she paused from where she was at the door, she turned round and spoke,  
“It means, you can either drive yourself home or I can have you collected.”  
“You’re good” was his only response. Natalie rolled her eyes briefly before heading out of the room. 

AT THE STARK EXPO

Hammer had just unveiled his so called elite war machines. Natalie closed her eyes briefly,   
‘This is not going to be good’ she thought to herself. She was right. Stark made his appearance in his Ironman suit. Natalie watched as he started to warn Lieutenant Rhodes about the danger everyone was in. she watched as the machines began to shoot and fly up in the air, Stark and Rhodes beginning to shoot them down. People started screaming and running as the glass ceiling was smashed and began falling down on them. Natalie quickly pulled Pepper to the ground and covered her with her own body. 

Pepper was freaking out as she felt herself being pulled to the ground before feeling a weight on her. She heard glass smash into the ground next to her and a small grunt from what she know realized was a person on top of her. A few seconds later the weight left her and she looked up to see her PA.   
“What? Are you okay?” she spoke worriedly and frantically as she was pulled back to her feet. Natalie smiled,  
“I’m fine Ms Potts, are you?” Natalie responded  
“I’m not hurt, thanks to you” Pepper spoke after a few seconds just staring at her, a bit flustered. She took in a deep breath,   
“I need to speak to Hammer”   
“Of course, I’ll come with you” Natalie responded calmly. Pepper spun on her heels and stalked off to the wear the technicians were stationed. Natalie followed. She knew that she needed to get in contact with Fury immediately yet she also knew she had to protect Pepper. 

Natalie watched as Pepper confronted Hammer about the War Machines. Hearing him attempting to deny everything was too much even for her amount of patience. She snapped and stalked forwards. Grabbing Hammer’s arm, she twisted it harshly behind his back and slammed down onto a nearby table.   
“Where is he?” she hissed into his ear.   
“I don’t know-“ he cut off with a shout of pain as she twisted his arm up higher.  
“Vanko! Where is he?” she snarled dangerously.  
“My facility” Natalie shoved him harshly before letting go. She turned round and hurried away, ignoring Pepper’s calling. She faintly heard her soon to be ex boss on the phone to the NYPD. She pulled out her phone and speed dialed Fury,  
“Sir we have a situation” she spoke as soon as the phone was picked up.  
“I’ve already heard. I’ve been waiting for an update for a while Agent Romanoff” Fury responded irritated. Natasha (Will be Natasha from now on) winced slightly,  
“Apologizes sir” she spoke,  
“We’ll discuss this later, update now Agent” Fury ordered  
“Hammer Industries have been funding Ivan Vanko to make War suits like Starks’, she started. Vanko is controlling them from Hammer’s Facility. I’m on my there now”   
“Take him out Romanoff, and try to shut them down from his computer. Understood?” Fury ordered.   
“Yes Sir” she muttered clearly. The phone was disconnected from Fury’s side. She put the phone back into her pocket and picked up speed.

 

Natasha stormed out of the expo and saw Happy just leaning against his car.   
“What’s happened?” Happy asked as soon as he saw her. She ignored him,  
“Get in the car, take me to Hammer Industries” she ordered already heading for the door.  
“I’m not taking you anywhere” Happy responded. Natasha spun to face him, a frustrated look on her face,  
“You want me to drive!?” she half snarled  
“No... Get in the car” Happy responded unhappily. She smirked slightly as she got into the back seat. As the car cruised into the traffic, she began to change in to her SHIELD’s uniform.  
“Watch the road” as the car revered off suddenly.  
“I got it. I got it” Happy muttered, keeping his eyes firmly on the road ahead.  
“Speed up.” Natasha ordered as she finished zipping up her cat suit. Happy didn’t bother to complain, he just did what she said.  
“Stay in the car” Natasha ordered as soon as she was out of the car.  
“I’m not staying in the car” Happy rebuffed her, getting out of the car himself. She stopped from where she was hurrying to the door and spun round,  
“I said. Stay. In. The. Car.” She snarled. Happy paused for a second before continuing to walk forward.  
“What are you wearing?” he asked as he got a good look at her uniform. She ignored him.  
“Look, I’m not letting you go in there alone” he told her as he watched her take a lock picker from one of the pouches on her belt.  
“You wanna help?” she asked glancing at him briefly before beginning to work on the door. He nodded,  
“Keep the car running” she told him as she unlocked the door. Before she had the chance to open the door, Happy already did so and moved into the building. Natasha muttered something deeply uncomplimentary before following in. She was just in time to see him punch a massive guy in the face. Natasha rolled her eyes as he got punched back as she ran passed him and threw two electric disks at a coming guard before continuing on.

(NOTE- FIGHT SCENE THAT NOW HAPPENS IS THE SAME ONE IN THE FILM. I AM NOT GOING TO ATTEMPT TO DESCRIBE EVERY MOVE SHE DID)

Natasha kicked in the door where she knew Vanko should be. Covering every direction with her guns, she searched the room before cursing softly,  
“He’s gone” she informed Happy, who had finally caught up with her. Natasha walked over towards the computer and sat down in front of it. She began to hack into the software,  
“What are you doing?” Happy asked  
“I’m hacking into Rhodey’s suit.” She replied curtly. Stark’s image appeared onto the screen. “Stark!”  
“Yep?” Came the response,  
“Reboot complete, you’ve got your friend back” she informed him with a slight smile  
“Thank you very much, Agent Romanoff”  
“Well done with your new chest piece, I am reading significantly higher output and your vitals all look promising” she told him.  
“Yes for the moment I am not dying” Stark replied dryly  
“What do you mean dying? You’re dying!” Peppers hysterical voice came through before her image came up.  
“Is that you? No I am not dying. Well not anymore” Stark told her   
“You were going to tell me?” Pepper’s voice reached a new level of hysteria, “You really were dying?”  
“I tried but you didn’t let me”  
“Why didn’t you tell me?”  
“I was going to make you an omelet and tell you” Stark’s voice got louder as he tried to overcome his CEO/ girlfriend.  
“Hey! Hey! Save it for the honeymoon.” Natasha broke in, slightly irritated, “You have incoming Stark. Looks like the fights coming to you”  
“Great. Pepper?” Stark spoke,  
“Are you okay now?” Pepper asked  
“I am fine. Don’t be mad. I’ll formally apologize…” Pepper broke in,  
“I am mad!”  
“… When I am not fending off a Hammeroid attack” That silenced Pepper’s protestation  
“Fine”  
“We could have been in Venice” That was Stark’s last word. Pepper scoffed while Natasha rolled her eyes slightly.

Natasha continued to hack into Hammer’s database, copying every bit of data that seemed to relate to machines.  
“What are you doing now?” Happy asked curiously,  
“My Job” Natasha replied shortly, too focused on what she was doing  
“And that is…?” Happy continued to question her,  
“No of your business?” she snapped, tearing her gaze away from the screen for a moment and shooting a deadly glare at him. Happy stepped back from the intensity and decided not to say another word.  
“Heads up Stark, Lieutenant. You have one more incoming. This one is different from the others, I’m reading a significantly higher output than the others” Natasha informed them ten minutes later.  
“Great thanks” Stark replied. She went back to hacking.

After the battle was confirmed as over, Natasha found herself outside her boss’s office. Sighing silently, she schooled her expression and knocked on the door. A few seconds later she was permitted entry and she opened the door.  
“Shut the door and sit down Agent Romanoff” Fury spoke up. Silently, she obeyed.  
“Your overall performance of this assignment was outstanding.” He told her, “However, I would like to know why you did not immediately update me on the situation as soon as it was apparent that Hammer had lost control of the machines” he finished sternly.  
“I was protecting Ms Potts Sir; I did not have a chance to contact you any earlier than I did. We confronted Hammer almost immediately after the first drone deployed” She responded succinctly. Fury studied her, his eye narrowed.  
“I see.” He spoke, “Very well. I will let you off this time. However Agent Romanoff, if I have to hear about an escalation from another source before you next time. I will not be lenient. Am I understood?” he growled. Natasha nodded her head sharply,  
“Understood Director”  
“Good. Wright up your report for both the night’s event as well as your assessment of Stark” He looked back down at his work after he spoke. Taking that as a dismissal, Natasha stood up,  
“They will both be on your desk by 0800 tomorrow morning Sir” she informed him before walking out. 

“I’m not sure I want you reading that” Fury’s voice rang out the warehouse. Stark’s fingers froze where they were attempting to open the folder on the table in front of him.  
“I’m not too sure it pertains to you anymore” he finished as he took the seat opposite.   
“This, this is Agent Romanoff’s assessment of you” Fury informed the man, sliding it across to Stark, apparently deciding that he should read it.  
“Where is the Triple imposter?” Stark asked.  
“She’s working” Fury replied. He knew that Natasha was in the warehouse somewhere. Doing her job as protection detail.  
“I see. Well what has she said about me?” Stark opened the folder.  
“Personality overview: Mr. Stark displays compulsive behavior” he stopped and looked up at Fury,  
“In my defense that was last week” he continued on,  
“Prone to self-destructive tendencies”  
“I was dying! And please, aren’t we all?” he protested. Fury just looked at him.  
“Textbook narcissism” Stark opened his mouth to refute before closing it,  
“Agreed” Fury smirked slightly.  
“Okay here it is. Recruitment assessment for the Avengers Initiative: Ironman- Yes” he closed the folder, “Well I’ll have to think about it”  
“Not so fast,” Fury opened it again, “Read on.” Stark looked at him strangely for a moment before reading further,  
“Anthony Stark… Not, NOT Recommended” he looked puzzled, “That doesn’t make sense, how can you approve me, but Not approve me? I’ve got a new ticker. I’m in a stableish relationship” Fury stood up at that point and picked up the folder,  
“That’s why we only want you as a consultant at this point in time” he informed him. Stark stood up,  
“You can’t afford me. Then again I will waive my customary retainer in exchange for one small favor.” Fury raised an eyebrow, “Me and Rhodey are being honored in Washington and we need a presenter” Fury nodded, knowing where he was going with this.  
“I’ll see what I can do” They shook hands,  
“Good. See you around Fury” Stark told him before walking out of the warehouse to his ridiculously expensive car. Fury only had to wait a few moments before Natasha jumped down from the beams and approached him.  
“Do you think he will be ready in the future?” Fury asked his top spy. Natasha thought about that for a moment.  
“Yes Sir. I think in the right situation, Stark will step up” Fury nodded.   
“Good job on the assessment”   
“Thank you Sir”   
“Get the car ready. We will head back to headquarters” He ordered  
“Yes sir” she replied and walked off.   
She opened the door to the SUV as she saw her boss approach her a few minutes later. He nodded to her and smiled as he got in. Natasha shut the door behind him and got into the driver’s seat.  
“You do realize that Stark will probably attempt to hack into SHIELD database to get into my file don’t you director?” Fury nodded,  
“I’ll have all details regarding your extra abilities and record before you joined SHIELD deleted from the systems. The only paper copy will be in my office. Don’t worry Natasha, your secrets are safe” Fury reassured his agent. He caught the small smile Natasha tried to hide and smiled as well. The rest of the journey was made in silence.


	33. Chapter Thirty Three

‘Agent Romanoff, please report to Director Fury’s office. I repeat, Agent Romanoff, please report to Director Fury’s office.’ The voice announced over the speakers. Natasha sighed as she got up from where she was just beginning to stretch her muscles. She quickly went back into the changing room and put on her standard SHIELD uniform before hurrying to her boss’s office. Knocking politely on the door, she only had to wait a few seconds before being permitted entry. Natasha walked in and stood almost at attention in front of Fury’s desk. She noticed that Coulson was also in the room.  
“Director, Agent Coulson” she greeted them respectfully.  
“Agent Romanoff, please take a seat” Fury greeted her. Once she was seated, Fury continued,  
“You’re being sent to Russia.” Fury started without preamble. Natasha blinked once.  
“Who’s my target?” she inquired.  
“His name is Luchkov.” Fury stated, handing her a folder. “We have Intel believing that he is moving military weapons illegally throughout Russia and their neighboring countries”  
“And my objective is?” she asked, flicking through the folder and reading with impossible speed.  
“Information primarily. Do not kill him unless you have no other choice. Understood?” Fury ordered  
“Completely Sir. When do I leave?”  
“Tomorrow Morning. A Quin-Jet will be waiting for you.” He answered.  
“Yes Sir” she responded.

“Was there anything else you wanted Director?” Coulson asked.  
“The Tesseract has been found. As has Captain Rogers, better known as Captain America.” Fury informed him. Coulson’s eyes widened. Natasha’s eyes widened for a moment. She remembered him very clearly. Coulson spoke,  
“Are you serious?” Fury just looked at him,  
“Right of course you are.” Coulson muttered. “What do you want me to do?”  
“Assign Agent Barton to the P.E.G.A.S.U.S FACILITY. I want him to oversee the Tesseract project.” Fury ordered  
“Yes sir. And what of Captain Rogers?” he asked slightly nervously. Fury smirked slightly,  
“He’s still unconscious, feel free to check up on him” Fury told him. Coulson almost beamed with happiness. Natasha rolled her eyes slightly at his fanboying.  
“Was that all you wanted me for Director?” she asked quietly, still thinking of the man she had met roughly fifty years ago. Fury looked at her in slight concern,  
“Are you okay Natasha?” using her first name, showing just how worried he was. She shook her head slightly and focused on her boss.  
“I’m fine Sir, just a long forgotten memory popped up”   
“And what memory was that?” he asked curiously.   
“I met him once” she told him, “Captain America” she had a fond, small smile on her face as she remembered him.  
“Did you? When?” Fury was astonished. Coulson was just looking at her in shock.  
“I don’t remember the year; I was on a mission to follow the Howling Commandos. He caught me” she smirked, “That doesn’t happen often” Fury shook his head,  
“I know. How old were you?”  
“Twelve years old, before the serum” Natasha answered.  
“That explains it” Fury matched her smirk. “Well this will be a reunion of sorts won’t it? When he awakes” Natasha shook her head,  
“He will not be told unless he makes the connection himself, which I highly doubt he will” Coulson looked like he was about to protest but was cut short by Fury to his surprise.   
“Are you sure Natasha?” he asked. She nodded,  
“It’s better for everyone that way” she said, “Now is that all Director, I need to prepare?” Fury waved his hand towards the door,  
“You’re dismissed Agent Romanoff” she nodded to both of her superiors before walking out the door.

“I can’t believe she’s met him before me” Coulson muttered, “I never realised just how old she is” Fury smirked,  
“Don’t let her hear you call her that, you won’t be able to move again” Coulson shuddered at the thought,  
“Good point. I’ll leave you to your paperwork” he said, standing up whilst pointing to the large stack on Fury’s desk.  
“Keep me updated Coulson” Fury told him. Coulson nodded before walking out.

(A/N- okay guys getting into the avengers plotline now. I’m starting from the point where Natasha meets Banner. Its going to be a little bit different)

“You know for someone who’s supposed to be avoiding stress, you picked a hell of a place to settle” Natasha’s voice held a hint of amusement.  
“Avoiding stress isn’t the secret” Bruce replied calmly,  
“Then what is?” Natasha asked. Bruce ignored the question,  
“I’m assuming the whole place is surrounded?” he asked, peeking out of the window.  
“Just you and me Doctor” Natasha replied.  
“And you are?” he asked,  
“Natasha Romanoff” she answered smoothly.  
“And your actress buddy, is she a spy to? Do they start them that young?”  
“I did” Natasha informed him truthfully. Bruce looked at her with something akin to pity.  
“Are you here to kill me Ms Romanoff? Because that’s not going to work out well, for everybody” he asked in bitter amusement,  
“No of course not. I’m here on behalf of SHIELD.” She responded. Bruce sighed,  
“How did SHIELD find me?” Natasha smirked slightly,  
“We never lost you Doctor, we’ve even helped keep some interested party’s of your scent”  
“I see. And what does Fury want with me?”  
“This” she took her phone up and brought up a picture before sliding it across the table, “is the Tesseract” Bruce put his glasses on and picked the phone up.  
“What does Fury want me to do with it? Swallow it?”  
“No, no, he wants you to find it, its been taken by a hostile force” He took his glasses off,  
“So Fury’s not looking for the monster?”  
“Not that he’s told me” Natasha replied  
“And he tells you everything?” There was a deafening pause before she spoke again,  
“Talk to Fury, he needs you on this.”  
“What so he can put me in a cage?” he asked snidely,  
“No one’s going to put you in a cage” Natasha refuted leaning forward to get the phone. Bruce slammed his fists onto the table,  
“STOP LYING TO ME!” quick as a flash a gun was in her hands and pointed directly at his head. They stood like that for a few seconds before Natasha lowered her weapon,  
“You done testing me?” she asked no sign of fear or any other emotions on her face. Bruce looked stunned for a moment before his expression turned sheepish.  
“Sorry about that, I just wanted to see what you would do.”  
“I figured” Natasha replied dryly, “Is there anything you need? Or can we leave?” she said, standing up and making her way to the door. 

Bruce looked startled for a moment before shaking his head,  
“There’s nothing irreplaceable” he told her as he joined her by the door,  
“Your basic necessities will be provided by SHIELD” she told him as she walked out of the door. Bruce looked around outside expecting to see many SHIELD agents converging on him with guns but saw nothing.   
“I told you, we’re alone” Natasha informed him as she led him to her hidden Quin-Jet.  
“I didn’t think you were being completely honest” he confessed. She gave him a small smile,  
“I get that a lot”   
They both entered the cockpit and took the pilots chairs.   
“So where did you find the little girl?” Natasha looked at him briefly before turning her attention back on the controls.  
“She was on the street, begging for money. I told her that if she got you to come to the hunt without raising suspicion I would give her $300” Natasha replied. Bruce raised an eyebrow.  
“That’s a lot of money for such a simple thing” he commented. Natasha shrugged,  
“It’s not like I have a shortage of funds Doctor”  
“I see” was his reply.

There wasn’t conversation for the next couple hours. Bruce fell asleep shortly after the Jet took off. Natasha checked on him from time to time however other than that, she ignored his presence. She flicked on her communicator,  
“Director Fury, this is Black Widow. Banner is secured”   
“Good. ETA Agent Romanoff?” Fury’s voice could be heard clearly.  
“ETA four hours sir”  
“Do better Romanoff. You’ve got three”  
“Yes sir” Natasha replied before switching the switch. She sighed as she sped up. 

“Wake up Doctor” she commanded crisply two hours and ten minutes later. Bruce’s head shot up a moment later as he looked round in surprise. He glanced over at Natasha,  
“How far away are we?”  
“ETA six minutes” she answered shortly. A few minutes later she began to flick various switches,  
“Control this is Black Widow; requesting permission to land. Over”  
“Black Widow, please give your flight ID and Pass code, over”  
“Flight ID, Delta Zero One. Pass code, Alpha Seven Bravo Charlie Nine Three Zero. Over”  
“Widow, this is control. You have permission to land over.”  
“Thank you Control. Widow over and out” she took her head set off before expertly landing the jet. At least ten people ran towards them as soon as they were safely touched down. She opened the ramp and got up.  
“Lets go Doctor” she said as she gestured for him to follow her. Bruce stretched before following the agent down the ramp.   
“Wait here” she gestured to a relatively clear area of the deck before walking off. Bruce clutched his hands anxiously staring around him, clearly nervous. Natasha walked over to officer on deck,  
“Let Fury know that Banner has arrived” she told him. He nodded before relaying her message into his headset. Whilst he was waiting for a response, another Jet landed. He nodded to himself,  
“Fury said to tell you that firstly when Agent Coulson arrives, you are to inform him that he is needed on the Bridge. Secondly, when the guest with Coulson arrives, you are to bring both him and Banner to him.”  
“Copy That” Natasha replied before walking off.

She saw Agent Coulson and surprise, surprise, Captain America talking to Banner.  
“Agent Romanoff” Coulson greeted her. “Captain Rogers” he said in way of introduction, gesturing towards the tall man next to him.  
“Ma’am” Rogers spoke to her with a nod.  
“Hi” she greeted him. She turned back to Coulson, “They need you on the Bridge”   
“Right. See you shortly” Coulson replied. With a nod to both Rogers and Banner, he walked off leaving the three of them alone.  
“There was quite the buzz around here when they found you in the ice” Natasha informed him. Thought Coulson was gonna swoon when he heard it. Has he asked you to sign his Captain America trading cards yet?” she asked with an eyebrow raised.  
“Trading cards?” Rogers asked. Bruce looked amused.   
“They’re vintage. He’s very proud” Natasha told him, a smirk on her face. Rogers nodded,  
“He hasn’t, no” he looked at her carefully. Something about her seemed familiar but he couldn’t place it.

Bruce wandered towards the edge of the deck, Rogers joined him.  
“Must be strange for you, all this” Bruce commented, waving his hand around the busy deck.  
“Well this is actually kind of familiar” Rogers answered him.  
“Gentlemen, you may want to step inside in a minute. It's gonna get a little hard to breathe.” Natasha was suddenly next to them. They both jumped slightly. Suddenly the deck started to shake as though to confirm her words.  
“Is this a submarine?” Rogers asked amazed,  
“Really? They want to put me in a submerged, pressurized container?” Bruce asked sarcastically. Natasha smirked. He leaned forwards to see over the edge and realised that the boat was lifting out of the water. He grimaced as he realised what exactly was happening,  
“Oh no, this is much worse” he informed his companions. Natasha rolled her eyes slightly,  
“If you would follow me gentlemen” she told them before spinning round and beginning to walk in the opposite direction. Bruce and Rogers shared a glance before hurrying after her.

Natasha led them through numerous hallways before coming to the doors of the Bridge. She looked over her shoulder to check to make sure she hadn’t lost them on route. ‘Fury would not be pleased if that happened’ she thought and shivered slightly at the consequences that would have occurred. The doors hissed open and they all heard various instructions being called out.  
“All engines operating. SHEILD emergency protocol; one nine three six in effect. We’re level sir” Hill called out after confirming it on her consol screen.   
“Good. Lets vanish” Fury ordered from where he stood at the command post.  
“Engage retro reflection panels” Hill ordered.  
“Retro reflection panels engaged” Another agent confirmed 

“Gentlemen” Fury greeted Banner and Rogers. Rogers walked up to him and handed him $10. Fury rolled his eye but accepted it anyway.  
“Thank you for coming” He held out his hand to Bruce. He shook it.  
“Thank you for asking nicely” he counted, glancing at Natasha. Natasha stood there, back straight and no emotion on her face. Fury smirked at him before nodding his head in Natasha’s direction.  
“So... uh how long am I staying?” Banner asked nervously  
“Once we get the Tesseract, you’re in the wind” Fury replied.  
“Where are you with that?” Fury pointed to Coulson  
“We’re sweeping wireless accessible camera on the planet. If it’s connected to a satellite, that’s eyes and ears for us.” Coulson answered.  
“That’s still not going to find them in time” Natasha muttered as she crouched down by a screen with Clint on it. Fury raised an eyebrow whilst Banner nodded in agreement,  
“You have to narrow down the field” He told Fury. “How many spectrometers do you have access to?” he asked, rolling the sleeves of his shirt up.   
“How many are there?” Fury asked. Bruce shrugged,  
“Call every lab you know and tell them to put their spectrometers on the roof and calibrate them for gamma rays. I’ll rough out an algorithm based on cluster region. At least this way we can rule out a few places.” Fury nodded his head in understanding.  
“Do you have some place for me to work?”  
“Agent Romanoff, would you show Dr Banner to his laboratory please” it wasn’t a request. Natasha nodded,  
“Yes Sir.” Turning to Bruce, “This way Doctor.” She left the room with Bruce close behind her.  
Rogers walked up to Fury with a frown on his face,  
“Who is she Fury?” he asked a puzzled look on his face. Fury blinked, inwardly wondering if he had figured it out.  
“That Captain is Agent Natasha Romanoff, one of SHIELD’s top agents.” He rolled his eyes,  
“I know that, it’s just that she looks really familiar”  
“Ask her about it if it’s bothering you that much” Fury told him bluntly, “Be ready to suit up at a moment’s notice” he informed the Captain before walking away.


	34. Chapter Thirty Four

“So how long have you worked here?” Bruce asked her as they walked down the hall towards his lab. Natasha raised an eyebrow,  
“Roughly nine years now” she answered. Bruce looked shocked,  
“I’m older than I look” she informed him at his look. Bruce nodded and they continued walking in silence.  
“We’re here” Natasha said as she stopped by a door. “I hope it’s to your liking Doctor” she added before turning away and began walking back the way she came. Bruce didn’t have a chance to say anything before she had already turned the corner.  
“Damn she’s fast” he muttered to himself as he entered his lab. 

‘Agent Romanoff and Captain Rogers, please report to the hanger bay immediately. I repeat, please report to the hanger bay immediately’ the call came from the speakers. Natasha took off at a fast run. Fury and Rogers were waiting for her by a quinjet.   
“Agent Romanoff, Loki’s been located in Germany. You are to take Rogers with you and intercept him. Understood?” Fury informed her.  
“Yes sir.” She replied, standing straight. Fury nodded,   
“Good luck Romanoff, Captain” he said as he walked away. Romanoff looked at Rogers,  
“Let’s go Captain” she told him, walking up the ramp. Rogers quickly followed her and they both sat down in the pilot’s chairs.  
“So what’s it like being a SHIELD agent?” he asked when they were in the air and on their way.   
“It’s interesting” she replied shortly.  
“You seem really familiar Agent Romanoff, I just can’t figure why” he commented. Natasha tensed slightly,  
“I would just forget about it Captain, we have more important things to worry about than my face reminding you of someone from your past” she told him. Rogers looked at her carefully before looking out the window,  
“Yeah, I guess we do” he replied softly. Natasha kept her eyes focused forwards; inwardly though she was cursing him. ‘He shouldn’t remember me! I was twelve and only saw him for five days!’ she thought annoyed. There was no more chatter for the rest of the flight.

“Loki, drop the scepter and stand down!” Natasha’s voice came out of the speakers. Loki shot at the jet in response, she quickly dodged it. She tried to get a shot at him with the guns mounted on the jet but failed.  
“The guy’s all over the place, I can’t get a clear shot” she informed the captain via their coms. Suddenly a warning came over her screen claiming that someone had overwritten her controls. AD/DC music started to play out loudly over the speakers. She rolled her eyes.  
“Agent Romanoff, did you miss me?” Starks voice was heard. She didn’t deign him a response. Iron man appeared out of the sky and blasted Loki off his feet before landing nearby. Mini missiles came out of his shoulders,  
“Your move reindeer games” He told the Norse when his face mask retracted. Loki in response dropped his staff and slowly raised his hands.   
“Good move” was Starks response, allowing the missiles to retract.  
“Mr. Stark” Rogers greeted him stiffly.  
“Captain” Stark replied in the same tone.  
“Stark, Rogers, get Loki on board” Natasha’s voice was heard through the coms as she lowered the quinjet so they could jump up on the ramp. As soon as they were all in, she lifted the jet again and flew back to base. Rogers tightly secured Loki to one of the seats whilst Natasha got in touch with Fury,  
“Director, its Romanoff. We have him”  
“Said anything?” he asked  
“Not a word” she replied  
“Just get back here. We’re low on time”  
“Yes sir” she answered before turning off her headset.  
“I don’t like this” Rogers commented,   
“What Rock of Ages giving up so easily?” Stark responded,  
“I don’t remember it ever being that easy. This guy packs a wallop.”  
“Well you were still pretty spry, for an older fellow” Rogers rolled his eyes and was about to respond when suddenly a large clap of thunder and lightning appeared out of nowhere.  
“Where’s this coming from?” Natasha asked as she looked out of the window, trying to keep the jet steady. 

Rogers noticed Loki getting rather pale,  
“What’s wrong? Scared of a little lightning?”  
“I’m not overly fond of what follows” Loki responded. A loud bang was heard as something landed on top of the jet. Stark opened the ramp door as he put his helmet back on. Thor appeared and grabbed hold of Loki before vanishing back into the night.  
“Now there’s that guy” Stark commented.  
“Another Asgardian? Natasha asked from where she was still trying to keep the jet steady  
“Think this one’s a friendly?” Rogers asked  
“Doesn’t matter, if he free Loki or kills him, the Tesseract’s lost” Stark responded as he prepared to fly out.  
“Stark! We need a plan of attack” Rogers shouted at him,  
“I have a plan. ATTACK” Stark said before flying out into the night. Rogers rolled his eyes and grabbed a parachute.  
“Get them back Rogers, I’ll inform Fury of the situation” Natasha informed him as she flicked her headset back on.  
“Will do ma’am” He responded before jumping out of the aircraft.

“Director, we have a situation” She started without preamble.  
“What Romanoff?” Fury was irritated.  
“Another Asgardian appeared. He took Loki and jumped out of the jet. Stark and Rogers are in pursuit.” She informed him. Natasha heard a muffled curse before Fury was heard again,  
“What did this new one look like Romanoff?” he asked.  
“Red Cape, blonde hair. Carried a hammer” Natasha recited.   
“That’s Thor. Loki’s brother” Fury responded.   
“What are you orders sir?” she asked.  
“Fly lower and pick them up. Thor included. Bring them back here ASAP.” He ordered  
“Yes Sir” She replied before switching off the headset and flying lower.

She had just landed when she heard Rogers voice coming through the com,  
“Are we done her?” Natasha took stock of the damage surrounding them. She opened the ramp and waited until they were all on board.  
“Thor, Director Fury wants a word with you when we get back to base” Natasha told him as soon as he was on board. Thor nodded, not surprised she knew who he was.  
“And you are?” he asked.  
“Agent Romanoff” She replied. “Was that stunt really necessary?” she asked, referring to grabbing Loki and flying off with him.  
“Loki has committed numerous crimes, he will face Asgardian justice” he proclaimed. Natasha nodded,  
“He also needs to answer for crimes against Humanity. Therefore I ask you not to take him again”. She informed him. Stark and Rogers just stared at them whilst they were having their conversation.  
“I give you my word Lady Romanoff” Thor replied.  
“Just Romanoff is fine” she informed him. There was no more conversation for the rest of the journey.

Two squads of armed guards greeted them when they touched down on the landing deck. Thor and Rogers led Loki down the ramp and to the waiting guards. Thor followed as they led his brother to his cell. Natasha walked down with Stark hurrying to keep up.  
“So Natalie, nice to see you again” He said. Natasha glared at him, “its Natasha, Stark. Keep that up and you will find yourself not able to have children in the future” she hissed at him. Stark paled,  
“You wouldn’t” he said, his hands covering his privates. Natasha smiled evilly at him,  
“It wouldn’t be the first time” she whispered in his ear before walking off.

Natasha met Bruce, Rogers, Hill and Thor in the bridge. They were watching Fury’s interrogation.  
“He really grows on you, doesn’t he?” Bruce asked.  
“Loki's gonna drag this out. So, Thor, what's his play?” Rogers asked  
“He has an army called the Chitauri. They're not of Asgard or any world known. He means to lead them against your people. They will win him the earth. In return, I suspect, for the Tesseract.” Thor replied.  
“Seriously, an army? From outer space?” Rogers commented in disbelief  
“So he's building another portal. That’s what he needs Erik Selvig for.” Bruce commented,  
“Selvig?” Thor questioned.  
“An astrophysicist” he answered.  
“He’s a friend” Thor told them.   
“Loki has him under some kind of spell, along with one of ours” Natasha informed him. Thor nodded.  
“What I don’t get is why he gave up so easily, I mean it’s not like he is leading an army from here” Rogers commented  
“I don’t think we should focus on Loki, his mind is like a bag full of cats. You can just smell crazy on him” Bruce added his input  
“Have care how you speak, Loki may be beyond reason but he is of Asgard and is my brother” Thor rebuked him.  
“He killed eighty people in two days” Natasha pointed out blandly. There was a pause.  
“He’s adopted” Thor said defensively. Natasha rolled her eyes.

“Iridium, what did they need the Iridium for?” Bruce asked trying to get the conversation back on track.  
“It's a stabilizing agent.” Stark said as he walked in with Coulson. He deliberately stood as far away from Natasha as possible. She smirked at him.   
“It means the portal can open as wide, and stay open as long, as Loki wants” He informed them.  
“No hard feelings point break, you’ve got a mean swing” he patted Thor’s arm as he walked past to stand at Fury’s station. He made a showing of trying to see all the screens at one; even covering an eye at one time.  
“How does Fury see these?” He asked  
“He turns” Hill informed him dryly. Stark spared her a look,  
“Sounds exhausting” He replied. “The rest of the raw materials, Agent Barton can get his hands on pretty easily. Only major component he still needs is a power source. A high energy density, something to kick start the cube.” He spoke as he pressed certain buttons on the monitor.  
“Since when did you become an expert on thermonuclear astrophysics?” Hill asked  
“Last night. Selvigs notes? Am I the only one who did the reading?” he asked the room at large. Silence was his answer.  
“Does Loki need any particular kind of power source?” Rogers asked  
“He would need to heat the cube to a Hundred and twenty million Kelvin just to break through the Coulomb barrier.” Bruce responded  
“Unless Selvig had figured out how to stabilize the quantum tunnelling effect” Stark joined in.  
“Well if he has done that then he can achieve heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet.” Bruce finished.  
“Finally someone who speaks English” Stark said.  
“Did that just happened?” Rogers asked. Natasha smirked. She understood most if not all of what they had just said. Stark wasn’t the only one who had read Selvig’s notes.   
“It’s good to meet you Dr. Banner; I’m a huge fan of your works. I’m also a fan of the way you turn into a raging green monster when you lose control” Stark said. Bruce smiled weakly,  
“Thanks” he managed to respond.  
“Dr. Banner is only here to track the cube. I was hoping you might join him.” Fury announced as he entered the room.  
“Shall we play doctor?” Stark asked Bruce,  
“We shall” Bruce replied, leading him to his Lab

“Romanoff, I want you to confront Loki. Get something out of him” Fury ordered her quietly, making sure no one overheard.  
“Yes Sir” she responded before slipping away. Fury walked over to Thor,  
“You think you can make Loki tell us where the Tesseract is?” he asked, already knowing the answer  
“I do not know. Loki’s mind is far afield. It’s not just power he craves but vengeance, upon me. There is no pain that would pry his need from him” Thor answered  
“A lot of guys think that, until the pain starts” Fury stated  
“What are you asking me to do?” Thor asked plainly  
“I’m asking you what are you prepared to do” Fury responded.  
“Loki is a prisoner.” Thor stated.  
“Then why do I have the feeling that he’s the only one on this boat that wants to be here?” Fury demanded. Thor had no answer and so Fury stormed off.


	35. Thirty Five

Romanoff stalked quietly to Loki’s prison and waited until he noticed her. A few seconds later her patience was rewarded.  
“There’s not many that can sneak up on me” Loki informed her, impressed despite himself as he turned round to face her.  
“But you figured I’d come” she replied calmly.  
“After. After whatever tortures Fury could concoct, you would appear as a friend, a balm. And I would cooperate”  
“I want to know what you have done to Agent Barton” She stated.   
“I'd say I've expanded his mind.” He told her with an insane smile on his face.  
“And once you've won. Once you're king of the mountain. What happens to his mind?” she asked.  
Loki leaned forward,  
“Is this love Agent Romanoff?” he asked with a smile.  
“Love is for children. I owe him a debt” she replied instantly. He leaned back and spread his arms,  
“Tell me” he invited her. Natasha took a seat to the side.  
“Before I worked for SHIELD, I uh… well I made a name for myself. I have a very specific skill set. I didn’t care who I used it for, or on. I got on SHIELD’s radar in a bad way. Agent Barton was sent to kill me.” A small smile appeared on her face, “He made a different call” she told him.  
“And what would you do if I vowed to spare him?” he asked curiously.  
“Not let you out” Natasha responded dryly. Loki chuckled,  
“Ah no. but I like this. Your world hangs in the balance and you bargain for one man?”   
“Regimes fall every day. I tend not to weep over that, I’m Russian. Or I was” she returned.  
“What is it that you want?” he asked. Natasha stood up and approached the glass barrier,  
“It’s really not that complicated. I’ve got red in my ledger; I would like to wipe it out”  
“Can you?” Loki asked her softly, “Can you wipe out that much red? Sao Paulo? The Hospital Fire?” Natasha’s eyes widened in fake horror, “Barton told me everything. Your ledger is dripping, it's gushing red, and you think saving a man no more virtuous than your self will change anything?” 

He slammed his fist onto the glass. Natasha pretended to jump back in fear,  
“This is the basest sentimentality. This is a child at prayer... PATHETIC! You lie and you kill in the service of liars and killers. You pretend to be separate, to have your own code, something that makes up horrors. But they are a part of you, and they will never go away!” Loki slammed his fist against the glass again,  
“I won't touch Barton. Not until I make him kill you! Slowly. Intimately. In every way he knows you fear! And when he'll wake just long enough to see his good work, and when he screams, I'll split his skull! This is my bargain you mewling quim!” Natasha flinches slightly before walking away disgusted,  
“You’re a monster” she informed him quietly, her head bowed. Loki chuckled evilly,   
“No, you brought the monster” Suddenly she spun round, her face cleared of all emotion,  
“So, Banner? That’s your play?” Loki stepped back puzzled,  
“What?” he replied confused. Natasha smirked at him and began walking away, talking into her com,  
“Loki means to unleash the Hulk, keep Banner in the lab, I’m on my way.” She stopped and faced Loki one more time,  
“Thank you, for your cooperation” she informed him coolly before spinning back around and hurrying away. 

“What is Phase 2?” Stark asked as he studied the screen in front of him.  
“Phase 2 is SHIELD’s plan to use the Tesseract to make weapons.” Rogers told everyone as he stormed in and chucked a prototype onto a desktop.   
“Rogers, we gathered everything on the Tesseract, that doesn’t mean we-“Fury was cut off by Stark,   
“I’m sorry Nick, what were you lying? He showed everyone the screen.   
“I was wrong Director; the world hasn’t changed a bit” Rogers spoke in disgust. Thor and Natasha walked into the room and instantly tensed upon noticing the tension. Natasha kept her eyes on Banner.  
“Did you know about this?” Banner demanded of her. She frowned,  
“No. You want to think about removing yourself from this environment Doctor?” she replied. Banner snorted,  
“I was in Calcutta, I was pretty well removed, No what I want to know is why SHIELD is using the Tesseract to make weapons of mass destruction.”   
“Because of him.” Fury finally answered, pointing at Thor. Thor looked surprised,  
“Me?” he said.  
“Last year Earth had a visitor from another world and we learned that not only were we not alone but that we were hopelessly, hilariously outgunned.”  
“My people want nothing but peace with this planet.” Thor protested him.  
“Yes but you are not only people out there are you? You’re not the only threat. The world is filling up with people who can’t be matched, who can’t be controlled.” Fury refuted.

“Like you controlled the cube?” Steve asked.  
“You're work with the Tesseract is what drew Loki to it, and his allies. It is a signal to all the realms that the earth is ready for a higher form of war.” Thor lectured them all.   
“A higher form?” Rogers asked  
“You forced our hand. We had to come up with something.” Fury defended himself.  
“A Nuclear deterrent? Because that always calms everything right down.” Stark muttered.  
“Remind me how you made your fortune Stark?” Fury demanded.  
“I’m sure if Stark was still in the business-“ Rogers was cut off.  
“Hang on how is this now about me?” Stark demanded.  
“I’m sorry isn’t everything?” Rogers replied with a smug smirk.

“ENOUGH” Natasha shouted. Everyone turned to look at her.  
“This is doing us no good. Yes SHIELD is making weapons that really shouldn’t be created. Yes Thor is not the only visitor that Earth may have. Yes Stark did make weapons in the past. However this does nothing to solve our current dilemma of Loki and an alien army on its way.” She informed them coldly.  
“Now, everyone shut up and focus on finding that cube” she ordered them all. They all stared at her for a moment before a beeping drew their attention. Bruce hurried over to the screen and took his glasses off,  
“What the-?” he was cut off as an explosion sounded somewhere on the ship. Everyone was blasted through the air in different directions. Natasha and Bruce fell through the glass floor that had shattered upon impact. She landed with a grunt as she felt several pipes landed on her legs. Bruce desperately tried to prevent the Hulk from coming out.  
“Doctor?” Natasha asked as she used her strength to shove the pipes of her and crouch next to the man. Bruce looked at her and growled,  
“GO!” Natasha’s eyes widened slightly before she was off like a shot. Her hand went to the com in her ear as she ran,  
“Fury!” She called.  
“Romanoff? You alright?” Fury’s came through slightly crackly,  
“I’m fine. The Hulk has been unleashed. Gotta go” she informed them quickly before turning it off and increasing her speed. 

Natasha could hear the Hulk behind her, getting closer. She ran through the glass hallway, sensing the Hulk right behind her. Before she could change direction, a large force impacted on her back, making her go flying. Natasha smashed into the wall and slumped down to the ground, blood trickling from the cut on her head. She looked up and saw the Hulk right there, glaring down at her. She forced herself to her feet and drew her gun but before she had even got it up, Thor came out of nowhere and tackled the raging green monster away from her. Sighing with relief, Natasha slumped back to the ground and rested her head against the wall behind her. Already she could feel her numerous injuries healing and she closed her eyes.  
“Barton’s on his way to the detention level, does anyone copy?” Fury’s voice came through her com a few minutes later. Quickly, she turned it on and responded,  
“This is Agent Romanoff, I copy” and she was off on her feet and running to intercept her wayward partner.

Quickly, Natasha came up behind Barton. Barton sensing someone behind him quickly drew an arrow and fired. Natasha dodged and kicked him in the chest before jumping over to the other walkway. The fight progressed at a furious pace and she knew she had to end it quickly. Hoping she would not injure him too badly, Natasha slammed him hard into the metal railings. She watched him groan and attempt to get up.  
“Natasha...” he whispered looking up at her, his eyes back to his original colour. Just to be on the safe side, she punched him. Hard. Barton was out before his head slumped back to the floor.  
“This is Agent Romanoff, Agent Barton is down. Medical personnel are needed on the detention level.”  
“Medical personnel are on route. ETA three minutes” came the response a minute later. Natasha waited for them to show up and then followed them to keep watch over her partner.  
“Agent Coulson is down.” Fury’s voice came over the com. She stiffened.   
“Medical personnel are on route” A SHIELD agent informed him.  
“They’re here. They called it.” Natasha’s shoulders slump as she heard him. ‘Not Coulson’ she thought. ‘Not him’ her gaze landed on her unconscious partner and her features softened.  
“I’ve got your back partner.” She whispered to him before taking a seat next to his bed to wait for him to wake up.


End file.
